- Garry Tonon finished Johnny Nunez via kimura submission at ONE Fight Night 6
- “The Lion Killer” plans to fight for the lightweight title again
Garry Tonon is proving that he could bounce back and compete for the title once again after his incredible grappling performance at ONE Fight Night 6. “The Lion Killer” needed less than two minutes to tap his opponent Johnny Nunez via a vicious kimura submission.
A quick one
Both fighters came in hungry to get back to their winning ways. However, after a few good exchanges in the opening round, Tonon decided to rely on his grappling skills and began working his way to an advantageous position off the fence. Nunez was trying to control Tonon through a body lock but “The Lion Killer” got a hold of Nunez and impressively slipped through a potential kimura submission.
Nunez grappled a bit, hoping to escape and the sequence saw Tonon rolling over. However, Tonon’s grip was so strong that he managed to retain the kimura attempt before finally completing the sensational move. Nunez immediately tapped and referee Herb Dean swiftly stopped the fight, declaring “The Lion Killer” as the winner via first-round submission.
Watch Tonon make quick work on Nunez below:
Garry Tonon 🇺🇸 snares Johnny Nunez in a SLICK kimura for the first-round submission win! 🥋 @Garry_Tonon#ONEFightNight6
🔴 Watch Live ⬇️
🇺🇸🇨🇦 👉 https://t.co/01DVujn7j1
🌍 👉 https://t.co/t1l2TKOXEP pic.twitter.com/SLZNH98PaR— ONE Championship (@ONEChampionship) January 14, 2023
Eyes on the bigger fish
The win over Nunez saw Tonon getting back on track in his pursuit of another shot at the ONE Lightweight title. It can be recalled that he suffered the first defeat of his MMA career when he faced Thanh Le for the lightweight strap at ONE Championship: Lights Out in March 2022.
In his post-fight interview, “The Lion Killer” said (h/t MMA Junkie):
“This body is America: strong, violent, full of limitless potential. I am perfection. I am domination. I am the future, and the future starts tonight… My arms will hold them down while they struggle,” Tonon said. “My legs will run them down while they flee. I am the U.S. Steel of domination.”
“We’re getting another shot at the title soon. I thought it was a dominant performance. Whoever’s going to be there when it’s time to fight, that would be great.”
Tonon is now 7-1 as a pro. The submission win over Nunez was his sixth victory by way of finish. Four of those came by way of submission. Nunez, meanwhile, is now 7-3 as a pro and has never tasted a win under ONE banner since joining the promotion in 2019.
