He made his MMA debut in 2005 and would go on to become a major star in his native Myanmar after signing with ONE Championship and winning two titles with the organization.[6][7][8]
Aung La Nsang is a national icon in Myanmar and his own bronze statue was erected in 2018 at the Kachin National Manau Park in his hometown of Myitkyina.[9] During the opening ceremony of the statue, a huge crowd of thousands fans gathered.[10][11][12]
Aung La Nsang is one of the few Myanmar citizens with an international profile, given the country only began opening up to the outside world over the last decade. He was the subject of unprecedented national attention in the lead-up to the fight with Russia's then-middleweight champion Vitaly Bigdash, with billboards across Yangon featuring massive portraits of the two fighters.[13]
Aung La Nsang said he got his nickname of the "Burmese Python" while fighting in the Midwest. A promoter from the Midwest asked where he was from and didn't know where Burma was. Aung La Nsang told him Burma was where the Burmese Python is from and so the promoter started to call him that. The geo-political sensitivities was not aware to the promoter.
Aung La Nsang said, "Of course the Kachin people want me to become the Kachin Python or the Kachin Lion, but you can't give yourself a nickname ... It just comes from the fans."[16]
Lethwei
Aung La Nsang has no formal training in his home country's traditional art of Lethwei and only fought with his cousins and friends. He said his uncle used to fight in Lethwei, but his experience was limited. He lists Tway Ma Shaung as one of his favorite Lethwei fighters alongside Lone Chaw.[17] Aung La has often expressed his interest in Lethwei.[18] and stated being open to a mixed-rules MMA-Lethwei fight, which could happen as ONE Championship already held Lethwei fights, notably at ONE Championship: Light of a Nation.[19][20]
Mixed martial arts career
Early career
Aung La made his professional debut in 2005, and soon built a reputation for his outstanding submission skills, earning himself the nickname of The Burmese Python. Early in his career, Aung La fought for King of the Cage and Ring of Combat as well as other, smaller promotions. However, his career got off to a slow start, with Aung La losing his first fight. At the age of 27, he became a social media sensation when footage of him knocking out Jason Louck at CFFC 17 went viral in the Kachin State. After the fight, he posed with a Kachin flag.[21]
ONE Championship
He made his ONE Championship debut in June 2014 and has headlined multiple shows at the Thuwunna Stadium in Yangon since 2016. After signing with ONE in 2014, Aung La Nsang returned to his home country of Myanmar two years later at ONE Championship: Union of Warriors, winning his bout to become a national hero.[22]
On March 18, 2016, he fought in Yangon for the first time, beating Mohamed Ali by submission.[23][24]
On June 30, 2017, he became Myanmar's first ever world champion in any mainstream sport, beating Vitaly Bigdash at ONE Championship: Light of a Nation to win the ONE Middleweight World Championship.[26]
On June 29, 2018, Aung La Nsang defended the ONE Middleweight title for the first time against Ken Hasegawa at ONE Championship: Spirit of a Warrior in Yangon in what is now considered one of the greatest title fights in ONE Championship history. He defeated Hasegawa by TKO in the fifth round to retain the title.[30]
On March 31, 2019, he defended his title against Ken Hasegawa for a second time at ONE Championship: A New Era in Tokyo, retaining his ONE Middleweight title via technical knockout.[32]
After his title defense against Hasegawa, Aung La signed a new ten-fight contract with ONE Championship.[33]
Aung La made his first defense of the ONE Light Heavyweight World Championship against Brandon Vera at ONE Championship: Century on October 13, 2019. During the match, Aung La connected on a spinning back elbow that sent Vera stumbling and followed it through with punches.[34] Aung La defeated Vera by technical knockout in the second round and successfully defended the ONE Light Heavyweight title.[35]
2020: Losing the Middleweight Championship
Aung La Nsang was next expected to defend his ONE Middleweight World Championship against Reinier de Ridder, event and date to be determined.[36] However, de Ridder was later pulled from the bout. Aung La will now face former middleweight champion Vitaly Bigdash for a third time at ONE Infinity 1 on April 10, 2020.[37] However, their title fight was canceled due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on sports.
On September 9, 2020, it was revealed that Aung La would be defending his ONE Middleweight World Championship against Reinier de Ridder once again at ONE Championship: Inside the Matrix on October 30, 2020.[38][39] On October 30, 2020, Aung La lost to de Ridder by submission in the first round,[40] ending his reign as ONE Middleweight World Champion.[41]
Aung La faced former ONE Middleweight title contender Leandro Ataides at ONE Championship: Battleground on July 30, 2021.[46] He won the bout via knockout in the first round.[47]
2022: Post-championship run
Aung La faced fellow ONE World Champion and former ONE Middleweight Champion Vitaly Bigdash in a trilogy fight at ONE: Full Circle on February 25, 2022.[48] He lost by unanimous decision.[49]
Aung La was scheduled to face Yushin Okami at ONE on Prime Video 4 on November 19, 2022.[50] However, the bout was postponed to ONE 163 for undisclosed reasons.[51] He won the fight via technical knockout in the first round and during the post-fight interview he pay tribute to his teammate Anthony "Rumble" Johnson who passed away this week.[52]
Aung La was scheduled to face Fan Rong on February 14, 2023, at ONE on Prime Video 6.[53] However, Rong withdrawn from the bout after having tested positive for COVID-19 and was replaced by Gilberto Galvão at a catchweight of 215 pounds.[54] He won the fight via technical knockout in the first round.[55] This win earned him the Performance of the Night award.[56]
The match between Aung La and Rong was rescheduled for May 5, 2023, at ONE Fight Night 10.[57] Aung La won the fight via a guillotine choke submission in the second round.[58][59]
Aung La faced Shamil Erdogan on September 6, 2024, at ONE 168.[60] At the weigh-ins, the bout was moved to 213.75 lb after the pairing missed weight and hydration in the designated time window.[61] He lost the fight via technical knockout in the second round.[62]
Honored by Tatmadaw
In July 2018, Commander-in-Chief Snr-Gen Min Aung Hlaing issued an official statement of congratulations, claiming the ethnic Kachin fighter embodies the indomitable spirit of Myanmar, the pride of the nation. Aung La was invited to the Ministry of Defence and presented with a cash award as a token of appreciation and recognition by representatives of all three branches of the Myanmar armed forces.[63]
On February 24, 2018, Commander-in-Chief Snr-Gen Min Aung Hlaing and Tatmadaw (army, navy, air force) officials honored to Aung La Nsang. On behalf of the Tatmadaw Commander-in-Chief, Yangon Command Commander Maj-Gen Thet Pone presented Aung La Nsang with a Myanmar Ks 10 million cash prize, as well as a certificate of honor sent by the Tatmadaw Commander-in-Chief, at an event held at the Rose Garden Hotel in Yangon.[64]
Charity work
Since becoming a superstar in his native land via his ONE Championship success, Aung La has committed himself to several charity projects, using his reach and fame to try and help the people of Myanmar. In particular, he has given his backing to educational charities such as "Street School Initiative" [65] and Global Citizen, as well as other causes in his native Kachin state.[66]
Aung La is a passionate advocate for Myanmar's wildlife and he has been a big supporter of Voices for momos, a campaign against illegal wildlife trade, since its launch in November 2017.
Defended the ONE Middleweight Championship (205 lb) Broke the record for the most consecutive ONE Middleweight Championship (205 lb) title defenses (2).
^ONE Championship refers to their 205 lb weight class as Middleweight, but per the Association of Boxing Commissions in the United States, 205 lb is considered Light heavyweight.
^ONE Championship refers to their 225 lb weight class as Light heavyweight, but per the Association of Boxing Commissions in the United States, 225 lb is considered Cruiserweight.
