Making history as the first Thai fighter to enter the octagon, Loma Lookboonmee put on a striking clinic against a game but overwhelmed Alexandra Albu at UFC Singapore.
Although she only has four career professional MMA fights, Loma Lookbonmee is no stranger to fighting. The 23-year-old Thailand-native has dozens of muay thai bouts under her belt, and came into UFC Singapore with a 3-1 MMA record. Half of her professional MMA fights came in Invicta FC, where Lookbonmee went 2-0. In her most recent bout, Lookbonmee defeated Monique Adriane Azevedo by unanimous decision in June.
Aleksandra Albu also held a 3-1 record ahead of her bout with Lookbonmee in Singapore. Three of those four career fights have come in the UFC, where the 29-year-old held a 2-1 record. Albu is coming off of the first loss of her career, after being submitted in 61-seconds by Emily Whitmire in February.
Lookboonmee was making history Saturday, and she started the fight on a mission. She immediately went on the attack, firing elbows, and later clinching and firing knees. Albu, under pressure, grabbed her opponent’s shirt, which resulted in a stern warning from the ref, and the threat of a point deduction. After the action was restarted, Albu looked to land a throw, but was pushed off by Lookboonmee. Lookboonme’s striking was clearly a step above ‘Stich,’ who wound up catching a kick and pressing for a takedown, only to be denied again. Not surprisingly, the Thai fighter was doing her best work in the clinch. He knees in particular were vicious.
Round two opened with one noticable difference: Lookboonmee came out wearing a sports bra rather than the shirt she’d had on in the opening round. A response to Albu grabbing at her outfit. This time, however, Albu briefly got the fight down, hunting for a leg lock. Lookboonme would pull free and make it back up, but if Albu could get the fight back down, she could change momentum.
Instead, Lookboonmee fired a number of kicks to calf and thigh of Albu. Albu, to her credit, continued to walk forward, and even caught Lookboonmee with a clean right hand! That forced the Muay Thai fighter to change levels, looking for a takedown of her own. It also gave Albu a confidence boost, and she fired off a few more punches before Lookboonme escaped. Lookboonmee would dump Albu in the next exchange, but declined to engage on the ground.
It's just a thumb 🤢
Albu has her thumb popped back into place between rounds. #UFCSingapore pic.twitter.com/kD67puuAPN
— UFC (@ufc) October 26, 2019
Between rounds, Albu’s corner had to pop her thumb back into place, though she appeared no worse for it. ‘Stitch’ opened the third on the attack, which led to a clinch. Lookboonmee landed another thigh kick, but Albu connected with a switch kick upstairs. In a clinch, the Thai fighter fired off a couple of elbows. Moments later, another elbow, over the top, would connect for Lookboonmee as the pair broke from a clinch. Lookboonmee’s kicks continued to hit the mark, and she’d dump Albu again after an exchange. Albu was still walking forward, but taking a lot of damage in doing so, with little to show for her efforts. Albu would get the fight down and get on top in the final thirty seconds, but by then it was too late.
A historic night for Thailand, as for the first time, a Thai fighter competed in (and won) a fight in the UFC. It comes at a key time, with a trip to Thailand potentially being on the promotion’s radar over the next couple of years. The biggest surprise was that one judge awarded the fight to Albu, resulting in a split decision.
*Updated*
The first:🔘 Thailand-born UFC athlete to sign
🔘 Thailand-born UFC athlete to make the walk
🔘 Thailand-born UFC athlete to win in the Octagon!Loma Lookboonmee #UFCSingapore pic.twitter.com/KpMa6KOjA0
— UFC (@ufc) October 26, 2019
Official Result: Loma Lookboonmee def. Alexandra Albu by split decision (30-27, 28-29, 30-27)
