Arjan “Singh” Bhullar strikes his success after his second-round technical knockout against Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) veteran and, now, former heavyweight champion legend Brandon “The Truth” Vera at the ONE: Dangal Heavyweight World Championship held on May 15, 2021 at the Indoor Stadium in Kailang, Singapore. With a recent promising victory, Bhullar continues his steps toward making history in MMA.
35-year-old former UFC fighter Bhullar and 43-year-old UFC veteran fighter Vera were hesitant to land punches during the first round in the ring with both repeatedly shifting their stances outside the circle. As time passed, Vera lost balance while his signature kicks and punches barely fazed Bhullar. He landed with a ground and pound at the 1:58 mark, which the Indian-Canadian fighter exhausted with several jabs to Vera’s face until the end of the round.
In the second round, Vera landed more attacks on Bhullar, dominating the first few minutes on the ring. Bhullar, with his Kushti training, equally returned the favor.
Vera’s hesitance of landing punches was evident, as Bhullar was completely guarded and ready to defend himself. At the 3:55 mark, the Indian-Canadian prodigy landed a punch on Vera’s head, which made him lose his balance. The Filipino-American fighter composed his stance and tried to sneak a kick onto Bhullar’s torso, which the latter easily recovered from. As the round nears its conclusion, Bhullar slowly cornered Vera to the fence with several jabs to his face. Attempting to escape from Bhullar’s punches, the Filipino-American fighter had returned several slow jabs and round kicks to Bhullar’s face and torso.
Despite attempts to overtake the round, Bhullar had proved to take control as he once again landed Vera on the ring. Vera was pinned as Bhullar continuously landed punches on his head while using weight to prevent him from recovering. Stuck at the fence, Bhullar hovered over Vera with nonstop attacks.
With only 31 seconds on the clock, referee Justin Brown officially concluded the main event. Indian-Canadian Bhullar had been declared the winner of the competition via technical knockout, concluding Vera’s five-year reign in the category.
Bhullar’s way to the belt
Hailing from a family of wrestlers, Arjan Bhullar grew to learn wrestling and Indian Kushti from his father before moving forward with freestyle wrestling. Bhullar is the first Indian-origin fighter who won a match in UFC after winning his debut fight in UFC 215.
The Indian-Canadian prodigy continues to draw power from his punches as he makes a name in the history of the combat sport with his recent victory as the first Indian to garner a title in MMA.
Bhullar had represented Canada in several tournaments, including the 2012 London Olympics where he finished 13th and became the first Indian-origin freestyle wrestler who represented Canada in Olympics. He participated in the 2010 Commonwealth Games and garnered gold, and a bronze at the 2007 Pan American Games. During his schooling at the Simon Fraser University, Bhullar had also garnered a two-time NAIA national title.
Bringing pride to India with his unending list of accomplishments, Arjan Bhullar is only set to take greater heights in bringing Indian mixed martial arts to light.
In an interview with ESPN5, Bhullar expressed, “...I've been dreaming of being a world champion for a long time. [...] It would be massive in the big scheme of things. It would show other Indian kids that it is possible to be world champion.”
