13 January 2016 – Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia: The largest sports media property in Asian history, ONE Championship™ (ONE) together with Tune Talk, will launch the second event of 2016 in style as the promotion heads back to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on 29 January for ONE: CLASH OF HEROES. In the main event featuring a Malaysia Warrior Bout, hometown hero Ev “E.T.” Ting squares off with one of the Philippines’ finest in Eric “The Natural” Kelly.
CEO of ONE Championship, Victor Cui stated, “2016 is going to be such a phenomenal year for mixed martial arts in Asia and we’re doing our best to put together the most exciting fights for fans all across the world. Ev Ting has really proven that homegrown Malaysian mixed martial artists can go toe-to-toe with the best in the world and will now face his sternest test against one of the best fighters in his division in Eric Kelly.”
Tickets for ONE: CLASH OF HEROES are available at www.AirAsiaRedTix.com.
26-year-old Ev “E.T.” Ting is one of Malaysia’s most promising young talents. His exceptional 10-3 record has come against solid opposition. Fresh off a Guillotine Choke submission victory in his last bout, Ting is known to be a ferocious striker with a well-rounded ground game making him a complete fighter. Ting will look to play off the energy of his hometown crowd when he takes on the Philippines’ Eric Kelly.
Eric “The Natural” Kelly of Baguio City, Philippines is undoubtedly one of the most talented fighters to come out of the country. With just one defeat on his professional record, Kelly has decimated opponents inside the cage with his ability to secure fight-ending finishes. Of his twelve victories, nine have come by submission. Kelly has long been due for a title shot but will have to get past Malaysia’s Ev Ting first to continue in his quest for ONE Championship gold.
Team Lakay veteran lightweight standout Eduard “Landslide” Folayang has long been among the elite mixed martial artists in the Philippines. Folayang continues his stellar career with wins over some of the most highly-regarded opponents. Since his previous fight, the 32-year old has added an improved grappling game to go with his great Wushu base. Folayang will now pit his skills against Japan’s Tetsuya Yamada next.
Tetsuya Yamada of Kanigawa, Japan is a promising young lightweight with a penchant for spectacular finishes. The 25-year-old has finished 12 of his 15 wins either by submission or by highlight reel knockout and will look to replicate his success when he makes his debut inside the ONE Cage against the Philippines’ Eduard Folayang.
Jake Butler has firmly established himself as one of the top light heavyweights in the division. He has a highlight reel of victories by exciting finishes, and possesses some of the best wrestling in the sport having honed his skills as captain of the Princeton wrestling team. Butler is unstoppable when he utilizes his signature wrestling techniques, but he has also improved his striking skills by training with Muay Thai world champions in Asia. Butler’s next challenge will be against Japan’s Tatsuya Mizuno.
Tatsuya Mizuno is a mixed martial arts veteran from Tokyo, Japan. Mizuno’s good mix of stoppage and submission wins lends to the fact that both his striking and his grappling skills are well-rounded and highly effective. He’s never in a boring fight and always competes with decisive victory in mind. At 34-years of age, Mizuno looks to continue his career against the fast-rising Jake Butler.
Geje “Gravity” Eustaquio of the famed Team Lakay of Baguio City, Philippines is a highly-skilled Wushu practitioner. He breaks down opponents with well-placed combinations and impeccable timing. Eustaquio’s lightning quick strikes have seen him successful against high-level opponents despite two recent setbacks. Eustaquio now looks to get back on track as he takes on Saiful Merican.
Saiful “The Vampire” Merican of Malaysia is happy to compete in front of his hometown crowd in Kuala Lumpur. The 27-year old flyweight is an explosive striker who starts out fast, looking to end fights early. He’s had success inside the ONE Cage and will now look to continue his winning ways against the Philippines’ Geje Eustaquio.
Hard-hitting Sami Amin of Cairo, Egypt is a bantamweight contender with a solid professional mixed martial arts record of five wins, two losses and one draw . He’s fought once inside the ONE Cage, against Fransino Tirta in 2014 but came up short. He now looks for redemption as he returns to ONE Championship to face Samir Mrabet.
Samir Mrabet of Brussels, Belgium is undefeated as a mixed martial artist at three wins with no losses. Mrabet owns a knockout and a submission win to his credit, including a victory in his ONE Championship debut last 2013. Mrabet now returns to the ONE Cage after over two years away from professional competition to take on Sami Amin.
At just 21-years of age, Keanu Subba is a former amateur MMA champion and is one of the most promising young talents on ONE Championship’s roster. Victorious in his debut for the promotion, Subba brought the crowd to the edge of their seats with a first round stoppage of Florian Garel. Subba will look to replicate the victory by taking on Rayner Kinsiong next.
Rayner Kinsiong of Sabah, Malaysia is known for his tenacity and grit inside the cage. Never one to back down from a good scrap, Kinsiong has poured his heart and soul into martial arts and it’s evident in the way he goes out and tries to put on a show for the crowd. Kinsiong will face the toughest test in his career when he takes on Keanu Subba.
Christian Lee, younger brother of Singapore’s MMA darling Angela “Unstoppable” Lee, made a successful debut inside the ONE Cage last December with a first round TKO of Cambodia’s David Meak. Lee impressed with his relentless offense, leading to the stoppage of Meak just under a minute into the matchup. Lee now looks for the same success when he returns to the cage against Mahmoud Mohamed.
Mahmoud Mohamed of Cairo, Egypt is a mixed martial artist with a 3-2-1 professional MMA record. The Egyptian has competed solely in his home country but will be making his way overseas for this first time now in his ONE Championship debut. He’ll take on one of the promotion’s fastest rising stars in young Christian Lee.
20-year old middleweight prospect Agilan “Alligator” Thani of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia is unbeaten as a professional mixed martial artist, with two wins inside the ONE Cage. All three of the wins on his record have come either by knockout or by submission as the young star is making his presence felt the welterweight division. Thani will face the returning James Kouame next.
James Kouame of Ontario, Canada last competed for ONE Championship back in 2013, when he was finished by highly-regarded Jake Butler via submission. Kouame seeks redemption inside the ONE Cage now more than two years later, this time against Agilan Thani.
As part of the Facebook Livestream of preliminary bouts, Reant Febriza Rainir and Saygid Guseyn Arslanaliev will do battle while female MMA athletes, Jenny Huang and Amira Badr will lock horns inside the ONE Cage.
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