Hailing from Cagayan de Oro, Philippines, Angelie Sabanal was one of the four Filipino mixed martial artists who competed at “ONE: Iron Will” at the Impact Arena in Bangkok, Thailand on March 24, 2018 It was ONE Championship‘s fifth 2018 event.
In the fourth bout on the main card, Sabanal faced Rika “Tiny Doll” Ishige of Thailand in the atomweight division. It was the eighth bout of the evening and the only female match on the card.
The atomweight match between Ishige and Sabanal ended via unanimous decision after three five-minute rounds in favor of the Filipino contender. The two kept the action focused primarily at the center of the ONE Championship cage for the majority of the bout.
Early on, Sabanal showcased her pinpoint accurate striking, peppering Ishige with stinging kicks and stiff punches. Although the Thai MMA fighter boldly traded strikes with the Filipina kickboxer from bell to bell, the latter pulled away in the final round, landing the more telling blows.
“ONE: Iron Will” marked Sabanal’s ONE Championship debut and professional MMA debut. On the other hand, the bout was Ishige’s fifth fight in the promotion.
Ishige made her promotional debut on March 11, 2017 at “ONE: Warrior Kingdom” where she knocked out Audreylaura Boniface Raphael via punches. On May 26, 2017, Ishige returned to the cage victoriously as she submitted Nita Dea via rear-naked choke at “ONE: Dynasty of Heroes.”
Also via rear-naked choke, Ishige was submitted by Jomary Torres at “ONE: Kings and Conquerors” on August 5, 2017. It was the Thai-Japanese fighter’s first loss as a professional mixed martial artist.
On December 9, 2017, Ishige redeemed herself at “ONE: Warriors of the World” where she submitted Rome Trinidad via rear-naked choke. After losing to Sabanal, Ishige now has 3 wins and 2 losses.
CONAN Daily 