Ariel Sexton Defeats Amir Khan at 2019 One Championship Call to Greatness

Ariel Sexton defeated Amir Khan via third-round submission in the quarterfinals of the ONE Lightweight World Grand Prix's Call To Greatness event at Singapore Indoor Stadium on Friday.

Khan was fighting in front of his home crowd, and that advantage appeared to provide an early boost, as he gained momentum as the first round reached the midway point.

However, Sexton took down his opponent late in the round, though Khan was able to quickly recover and get back on his feet.

The back-and-forth continued into the second round, with a bleeding Sexton ending the round by cornering Khan and launching him off his feet and to the mat in the final seconds. That set the stage for what would go down in the final round.

It would last just 73 seconds, as Sexton quickly forced Khan to tap out with a rear-naked choke.

It was quite the turn of events after Khan appeared to be on his way to victory early on:

Sexton noted after the fight that he is a "slow starter," so he stuck to his game and found a way to prevail in the end.

The 37-year-old had nothing but respect for Khan following a hard-fought win, calling his 24-year-old opponent "a beast."

Sexton will face Saygid Arslanaliev in the semifinals.