In preparation for the next bantamweight fight between Artem Belakh and Enkh-Orgil Baatarkhuu, Fabricio Andrade, the current world champion of the ONE bantamweight division of mixed martial arts, offered his perspective.
Andrade’s ambitions came fulfilled in February 2023 when he defeated John Lineker to become the ONE bantamweight MMA champion. This victory would make Andrade’s aspirations come true. Since that time, the superstar, who is now 26 years old, has been keeping a careful check on his category, which includes three matches that are slated to take place later this week.
As part of ONE Fight Night 18, which will take place on Friday, January 12, ONE will make its return to the illustrious Lumpinee Boxing Stadium. Kwon Won Il will compete against Shinechagtga Zoltsetseg, Artem Belakh will face Enkh-Orgil Baatarkhuu, and Mark Abelardo will face Ibragim Dauev. These three bantamweight mixed martial arts bouts will be featured at the event.
It was during an interview with ONE when Andrade shared his thoughts on the upcoming fight between Belakh, who has a promotional record of 1-1, and Baatarkhuu, who has a promotional record of 3-0:
Naturally, Enkh-Orgil has already demonstrated that he is not someone who should be overlooked. When he faced his most recent opponent, he was up against a relatively youthful opponent who was having a terrific moment, and he was able to finish the fight. So, Artem needs to have a good mind. The quality of his performance is higher, and if he fights with intelligence, he will have a better chance of winning this fight for the Prime Video ght that is currently available.
There will be no price for customers in North America to see ONE Fight Night 18, which will be broadcast live on US Primetime.
Fabricio Andrade believes Mark Abelardo can defeat Ibragim Dauev at ONE Fight Night 18
The other two bantamweight mixed martial arts matches that took place at ONE Fight Night 18 were discussed by Fabricio Andrade. Due to the fact that he defeated Abelardo by submission in the second round in July of 2020, “Wonder Boy” is the most knowledgeable about the fight between Mark Abelardo and Ibragim Dauev.
When asked about the possibility of Abelardo overcoming Dauev, Andrade made the following statement during the interview with ONE that was stated earlier:
Ibragim Dauev is going to be put through a formidable test. We have not yet saw him compete in ONE, whereas Abelardo is considered to be a “home” athlete. It will be a fight that is exceedingly uneven. The fact that we have not yet witnessed Ibragim Dauev compete in ONE Championship makes it tough to say, but I feel that Abelardo has the potential to win this fight.
It is highly possible that Andrade will be watching ONE Fight Night 18, since the event has the potential to produce three fighters who could be contenders for the belt. When it comes to Andrade battling himself, it is not obvious when he will defend his crown next or against whom he will do so.
