Reece McLaren says there's more to come after Hu Yong triumph: "This is just a scratch of what my potential is"
Current fourth-ranked flyweight MMA contender Reece McLaren may have found renewed energy after securing his 10th ONE Championship victory last weekend. He did so against the fifth-ranked contender Hu Yong at ONE Fight Night 22 via split decision.
McLaren and Hu figured in a back-and-forth clash in front of the packed Lumpinee Boxing Stadium crowd in Bangkok, Thailand, but the former's grit and superior grappling were enough to sway the judges into giving him the win.
Following this explosive performance, Reece McLaren spoke to Sportskeeda MMA and discussed the main challenge he faced during his fight with the 'Wolf Warrior' and his mentality moving forward.
The 32-year-old Australian star revealed:
"There's a bit of ring rust, ring rust definitely exist, I had to push that out, a lot of fine-tuning, and I truly truly believe that this is just a scratch of what my my potential is with what and where I am in my life right now."
This victory also kept McLaren's place in the divisional rankings and inched closer to a potential world title opportunity because, after all, he is considered as one of the most well-rounded fighters in the weight class.
He improved his ONE Championship record to 10-6 with a 70 percent finish rate.
Reece McLaren admits that he wanted a quick finish against Hu Yong at ONE Fight Night 22
Heading into the match against Hu, Reece McLaren shared that he wanted to have a quick day at the office and secure a swift victory against his Chinese opponent because, according to him, they are not paid overtime.
This fight plan, though, quickly changed when Hu rocked McLaren a few times in the opening frame, which prompted the CMBT Training Centre representative to utilize his grappling superiority to carve out the win.
North American viewers with an active Prime Video subscription can rewatch all the action from ONE Fight Night 22 via the free event replay.