Evolve MMA’s Nicole Chua picked up her first professional mixed martial arts victory tonight at ONE Fighting Championship 3: “War of the Lions” in Kallang, Singapore. Chua used her superior ground skills to force Indian national kickboxing champion Jeet Toshi to submit to a rear-naked choke.

Chua, who is Singapore’s first female mixed martial artist, engaged Toshi on the feet early on, but she soon took the fight to the mat. Chua then used short elbows to set up a transition to back control and quickly secured the choke for the victory in front of a partisan ONE FC crowd in Singapore.

Chua (1-0-0) countered early leg kicks from Toshi (1-1-0) with quick knees in a clinch before Toshi fired off a looping one-two over the top and backed away. Chua avoided a body kick and ducked under a right hook. She used a body-lock takedown to get Toshi down to the mat in the centre of the cage, then passed to side control. Toshi tried to counter by trapping Chua in a headlock, but Chua was not in any danger and she punished Toshi with short, slashing elbow strikes.

After two knees to the body, Chua passed straight to mount and began to flurry with punches and more elbows from the top. Toshi was forced to give up her back and Chua immediately took advantage by locking on the rear-naked choke. Toshi tried to blindly punch backwards, but the strikes had little effect. Chua switched her hand position and readjusted the choke and Toshi was forced to submit. A jubilant Chua leapt into the arms of her Evolve MMA teammates following the quick win.

Winner: Nicole Chua by Submission (Rear-Naked Choke) at 2:07 of round one. She improves to 1-0-0.

(Photo Credit: Evolve MMA)