Both the Brazilian and Russian refused to back down and traded blow for blow in a tantalizing three round contest that impressed the Malaysian crowd in attendance.
Moraes was able to work himself to a dominant position early in the final round, but a crafty Saadulaev worked once to his feet, and then rolled to a sneaky leglock at forced Moraes to stand in escape.
Saadulaev showed why he is one of the most exciting fighters in the world and his Judo throws, scoring a late knee and submission - finishing the fight in top position.
Multiple-time Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu World Champion Leandro Ataides made a successful ONE FC debut, knocking out Brayan Rafiq from France in the first round. The victory extends his professional mixed martial arts record to an impressive 6 wins with no losses.
The big clash between Heavyweights Tony Johnson and Chris Lokteff was an exciting affair that ended with a unanimous decision victory for the young Australian Lokteff.
Heavyweight bout between Chris Lokteff (left) and Tony Johnson (right) - Photo by Nasrul Shazli Samil
He dropped the former American Football player and wrestler Johnson on multiple occasions in the first round.
Johnson elected to return to his wrestling roots in the second round, controlling the early proceedings and even coming close with a rear-naked choke attempt. However, Lokteff successfully reversed the position and landed several kicks to a dazed Johnson before the round was over.
In the third round, Lokteff managed to defend Johnson’s takedown attempts and continued to show his superior striking.
Lokteff earned a unanimous decision victory, making it the largest victory in his career and demonstrating why he is one of the best Heavyweight prospects in the world.
Casey Suire, an American boxer currently based in Indonesia, kicked off the night by defeating Raymond Tan from Malaysia via rear-naked choke in the first round of their Bantamweight contest.
In the second preliminary bout, young Malaysian MMA prospect Nik Harris controlled Indonesia's Zuli Silawanto and wore him down through ten minutes.
The bout was awarded to Nik after Silawanto failed to answer the bell for the third round.
The final preliminary bout featured a Featherweight contest between Steven Durr and Samir Mrabet.
The American Durr and Belgian Mrabet traded shots and dominant positions throughout the contest, but it was Mrabet’s devastating knees in the clinch and sweeps that arguably won him the decision.
Official results for ONE FC: WARRIOR SPIRIT:
Catchweight bout: Yusup Saadulaev defeats Adriano Moraes by Split Decision at 5:00 minutes of round 3
Middleweight bout: Leandro Ataides defeats Brayan Rafiq by KO at 4:14 minutes of round 1
Heavyweight bout: Chris Lokteff defeats Tony Johnson by Unanimous Decision at 5:00 minutes of round 3
Lightweight bout: Peter Davis defeats Alaa Mazloum by Submission (Rear-naked Choke) at 1:23 minutes of round 2
Flyweight bout: Gianni Subba defeats Chen Yun Ting by TKO (Strikes) at 3:03 minutes of round 1
Malaysian National Featherweight Championship Final: AJ Lias Mansor defeats Melvin Yeoh by Unanimous Decision at 5:00 minutes of round 3
Flyweight bout: Saiful Merican defeats Tok Sophon by Unanimous Decision at 5:00 minutes of round 3
Featherweight bout: Samir Mrabet defeats Steven Durr by Unanimous Decision at 5:00 minutes of round 3
Welterweight bout: Nik Harris defeats Zuli Silawanto by TKO (Corner Stoppage) at 0:00 minutes of round 3
Bantamweight bout: Casey Suire defeats Raymond Tan by Submission (Guillotine Choke) at 3:28 minutes of round 1
