Drex Zamboanga only needed 65 seconds to make a statement in ONE Championship's lightweight division.
Moving up from flyweight, Zamboanga scored a stunning first-round knockout win against Indian opponent Rahul Raju in ONE: Full Circle at the Singapore Indoor Stadium Friday night, Feb. 25.
Zamboanga properly timed a vicious right uppercut that sent Raju down the canvas, prompting referee Olivier Coste to halt the match at the 1:05 mark of the first round.
The Marrok Force fighter cornered Raju to the wall and closed in with solid body shots before unloading his finisher move.
Zamboanga also showcased his defense in the ground game despite being taken down by the Indian warrior.
Raju, however, wasn't able to sustain his position as Zamboanga was quick to get away with a swift scramble.
"I'm feeling great because it has been two years since I've been off from the cage. But now, I'm really excited for this fight. I'm preparing for almost two years," said Zamboanga in a post-match interview with ONE commentator Mitch Chilson.
"From flyweight to lightweight, it's not very easy because you need to train your speed, you need to train your conditioning, you need to be heavy. That's why I moved to lightweight because I want to have heavy hands, heavy strikes, and to dominate also in lightweight."
Zamboanga, brother of No. 2 women's atomweight contender Denice, improved to a 9-5 record while Raju fell to an 8-7 record.