Garry Tonon "happy about" fighting in the ONE Championship ring: “It's going to be impossible to not grapple”

American fighter Garry Tonon said he welcomes competing in the ONE Championship ring in his scheduled match this week in Thailand. He asserted that such a setting will allow him to do a lot of grappling, which is right up his alley.

'The Lion Killer' returns to action on Aug. 1 at ONE Fight Night 34: Eersel vs. Jarvis on Prime Video at the famed boxing ring of Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok, taking on Russian Shamil Gasanov in a featured featherweight MMA clash.

Speaking to the South China Morning Post in line with his showdown with Gasanov, New Jersey native Tonon opened up about his thoughts on competing in a ring instead of an MMA cage, saying:

"The thing about the ring is, even if you wanted to avoid it, it would be very, very difficult, especially even if only one of the guys wants to grapple and the other guy just wants to strike. I mean, you got a guy like Shamil. When Shamil shoots, he just goes straight in and all the way across the cage, you know?"

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He went to say that such match dynamic bodes well for him, sharing:

"So like, well, in this case be a ring, you're, you're going into the ropes. Like, there's just, no matter what, you're taken, even if I did a great job defending the takedown, we're getting, we're going to get pushed into the ropes and we're going to be attached to each other. It's going to be impossible to not grapple, you know? Which to me, I'm happy about."

Watch the full interview below:

The showdown at ONE Fight Night 34 is a rematch between Garry Tonon and Shamil Gasanov, who competed against one another in July 2023, with the former winning by submission (kneebar).

ONE Fight Night 34: Eersel vs. Jarvis is available live in U.S. primetime to North American fans with active Amazon Prime Video subscription.

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Garry Tonon touts an exciting match against Shamil Gasanov at ONE Fight Night 34

Garry Tonon believes his showdown with Shamil Gasanov at ONE Fight Night 34 is one of the more exciting matches on offer in the marquee event.

He made this known in the same interview with the South China Morning Post, highlighting how a lot is going into their scheduled match that fans can truly bask in.

The 33-year-old submission ace said:

"There's only like a couple of other guys, maybe, that they could have chosen. So, I think this match is as good as any, and he certainly has worked his way back up to deserving it for sure."

Entering ONE Fight Night 34, Garry Tonon is riding a three-fight winning streak to will his way back to world title contender conversation. Gasanov, the No. 3-ranked featherweight contender, for his part, is on a roll as well, winning his last four matches.

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Edited by Aziel Karthak