Fabricio Andrade, the current bantamweight world champion of ONE, has been dominating his opponents in their respective division ever since he joined the most prestigious martial arts organization in the world in the year 2020. The MMA superstar from Brazil has won all six of his bouts within the Circle, including five finishes (four technical knockouts/knockouts and one submission).
Because of this great performance, ‘Wonderboy’ was able to win the 26-pound gold in his most recent fight against his fellow Brazilian compatriot John Lineker at ONE Fight Night 7 in February 2023 through fourth-round technical knockout. This victory allowed him to take home the championship belt.
It was their second encounter; the first one had resulted in an anti-climactic manner of a no-contest owing to an inadvertent foul committed by Andrade. This time around, the situation was different. Following those two intense confrontations, the current world champion, who is 25 years old, has no problem taking on Lineker in a third match.
Nevertheless, Andrade did point out one important qualification in his most recent video for The South China Morning Post’s YouTube channel, which you can see here.
Wonderboy is quoted as saying:
“Yeah, if he continues to win, you know,” she said. If he keeps winning and keeps getting better, he’s going to be a really difficult opponent. He has fought in a lot of challenging bouts against notable competitors. As I’ve mentioned in the past, you are aware that I prevailed against him for a second time.
In Lineker’s most recent bout, which took place on August 4 at ONE bout Night 13, he staged an astounding come-from-behind, last-second knockout of Kim Jae Woong. This victory marked the beginning of Lineker’s route back to the world championship picture.
In the event that the 33-year-old prevails in his forthcoming bout against the No. 2-ranked bantamweight challenger Stephen Loman on September 29 at ONE Fight Night 15, his chances of earning another opportunity to compete for the world championship against Andrade would be indisputable. Because he has fewer than two months to recuperate and be ready for this major battle with ‘The Sniper,’ the task at hand for the ‘Hands of Stone’ will be a more difficult one to do than it would otherwise be.
Prime Video customers in North America may watch ONE Fight Night 15 at no additional cost.
