WATCH: Croatian sensation Roberto Soldic sends Dagi Arslanaliev in brutal one-shot knockout finish at ONE 171
Croatian MMA monster Roberto Soldic had a night to remember on Thursday, Feb. 20, at ONE 171: Qatar, thanks to the massive power in his world-famous left hand.
Going up against 'Robocop' in ONE Championsihp's much-anticipated return to Qatar was Dagi Arslanaliev, one of the promotion's longest-tenured fighters.
Midway through the first round, the Turkish standout attempted to throw a body kick. Instead of landing it cleanly, his chin was met with a crushing haymaker from the southpaw Soldic for one of the most vicious knockouts in recent memory.
Check out Roberto Soldic's one-shot finish of Dagi Arslanaliev below, which ONE shared on Instagram:
Finishing Arslanaliev in such fashion gave Soldic an early contender for knockout of the year and also marked his first win in the world's largest martial arts promotion.
In his December 2022 promotional debut, Soldic's bout with Murad Ramazanov ended in a no-contest after the Russian accidentally fired a knee strike to his groin. His second showing was a shocking knockout defeat to former ONE welterweight MMA king Zebastian Kadestam in May 2023.
Roberto Soldic doubles down on wanting to win ONE gold
With Roberto Soldic now having returned to the world-beating form that fans have grown accustomed to, he is primed to start his march towards the ONE welterweight MMA world championship.
In an interview with the Bangkok Post ahead of ONE 171, the UFD Gym product stated:
"For me, that is my dream, you know, the belt. The title, to get the gold in ONE Championship. You know, we fight on a big stage, in a big league. I mean, from the beginning, I had Murad Ramazanov, then I had a former champion, Zebaztian, now Dagi, finisher. So, you know, all tough guys. And that is why I chose ONE Championship. It's a big challenge for me, but my motivation is up there now."
The full replay of ONE 171 is available to fans who purchased the pay-per-view at watch.onefc.com.