Sabahan MMA hero vows to donate winnings to Haiyan typhoon victims

Sabahan fighter, AJ ‘Pyro’ Lias Mansor vowed to donate his winnings at the ONE Fighting Championship (ONE FC) bout Friday night to the victims of Haiyan typhoon in the Philippines.

The fight between two Malaysian mixed martial arts (MMA) legends, AJ and Melvin ‘Overkill’ Yeoh, ended with the former emerging on top via the judges’ unanimous decision.

AJ was crowned the Malaysian National Featherweight Champion after winning the fight that lasted three exciting rounds.

The former national silat champion said fighting Yeoh, who happened to his best friend, is like ‘killing’ his own countrymen as Yeoh is also from Malaysia.

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Fighter with a heart of gold - Photo by Nasrul Shazli Samil

“But it’s a business… it’s a professional fight that we have to do,” said 38-year-old AJ during a press conference soon after his fight.

On his announcement to donate to the typhoon Haiyan victims, he said the sight of what’s happening over there in Manila although not as bad as Tacloban, was heartbreaking.

He said it was terrifying to see people lose their loved ones and have their homes destroyed.

“Seeing people with no supply, no food, and people dying… so I thought to myself, I can do this. If I win, I’ll give the money to the victims,” said AJ overwrought with emotion.

Apart from that, AJ also said all he wanted to do after the fight was go back home and see his mother as he missed her so much.

AJ’s mother has been an inspiration to him as she often encourages him to continue training around Asia despite her being ill.

ONE FC: Warrior Spirit was held Friday night at Putra Indoor Stadium in Bukit Jalil where fighters from around Asia and other parts of the world compete in professional MMA bouts.