Hasbullah clinches title with third round KO
Published on: Monday, December 16, 2019
By: Iffah Dilaney
LABUAN: Leaving his opponent spiralling to the ground yet again, Hasbullah Sanmin ‘The Garagas Man’ made an everlasting comeback to the third edition of the Borneo Martial Arts Expo (B-Maex) by clinching the South East Asian Title Belt.
The former Iska Malaysia Super 4 Fight champion representing Garagas Fight Team triumphed in the match of the night against his Filipino opponent Eros Bunag of Kyokushin Fight Academy.
ADVERTISEMENT
The crowd was left at the edge of their seats as these two met in the five-round final match putting up a promising show for spectators who gathered around the ring set up at the beach-side.
Despite the gruelling fight, it was the 25-year-old ‘Garagas Man’ who returned with the belt after delivering his final blow to knockout Eros after two minutes and 11 seconds into the third round.
Hailing from Keningau, Hasbullah who is a trainer shared that his journey to clinch the title belt was almost far-fetched.
“Being a trainer, I devoted most of my time for my students of the Sabah state martial arts team to prepare them for competitions.
ADVERTISEMENT
“I faced time-constraints to train myself and only got in shape for this match in the last two months... Winning tonight was definitely through the support of my family and friends,” he told Daily Express after winning his fight on Saturday night.
The three-day expo was filled with adrenaline as contenders spilled their blood, sweat and tears to gain the glory of winning one of the eight title belts contested that night.
ADVERTISEMENT
Stealing the spotlight of the night was local superstar Mike Sidis who stepped into the ring once again this year and conquered it.
The Labuan boy earned cheers as he brought down his Iranian opponent Mostafa the ‘White Scorpion’ in a heated match for the 80kg Borneo Title Belt.
Tensions grew high as blows exchanged during the fight became rather personal but was quickly put to an end when the referee intervened.
However, the crowd-favourite, who spotted a cut on his left eyebrow, took home the belt after a bloodied match between the two fighters.
Mike upon receiving his title belt paid homage to his coach and B-Maex founder Alvin Chong by presenting the belt and bowing to him in the ring after the fight.
Another astounding match was when Will ‘The Kill’ Chops delivered a Knock Out blow to his opponent Alex Lim after a minute and 24 seconds into the third round of their fight.
Despite putting up a good fight, Alex was not able to pull through against the American fighter who went to work on battering his dazed opponent with hammer fists until the referee mercifully intervened.
With a spectacular finish, Will ‘The Kill’ went home with the 76kg Borneo Title Belt wrapped around his waist.
Brazilian-fighter Fabiano Hawthrone too did not disappoint as he dominated the match against Super 4 Malaysian National Championship reigning champion Kai Chee from Kuala Lumpur.
Failing to withstand the pressure from his Brazilian opponent, Kai Chee went home without the 75kg Borneo Title Belt this year.
In another 75kg Title Belt match, it was Bruneian Wali Rahman of Madness Muay Thai who prevailed against Malaysian Chew Zhi Kong.
Wali, who proved he was a force to be reckoned with, brought home the belt after a split decision by the judges.
Another crowd-pleaser was when Malaysian Hisyam Samsudin powered through his match against Bruneian Abdul Rahman for the 70kg Borneo Title Belt.
Hisyam poured the ammunition against Abdul Rahman in a gruesome match for the belt.
In the 57kg Borneo Title Belt match, it was Filipino Kenneth Zamudio ‘The Citius’ who was in control of the fight against Shah ‘The Black Machine’ of Unicorn 66.
In an all-Malaysian affair, it was a showdown against Morris Hii of D-30 Fight Team and Dean Hamsah of Team Karabaw in an impressive opening match of the night.
Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express’s Telegram channel.
Daily Express Malaysia
After three pain-induced rounds, it was Dean who brought home the glory of bagging the Malaysia Title Belt by JY.
There to present the title belts to winners were Labuan MP Datuk Rozman Isli and Labuan Corporation CEO Dr Fary Akmal Osman.