19 February 2018 – Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia: The largest global sports media property in Asian history, ONE Championship™ (ONE), has just announced its return to Malaysia’s bustling capital city of Kuala Lumpur. ONE: VISIONS OF VICTORY is set to ignite the Axiata Stadium on 9 March with another evening of authentic martial arts action. In the main event, reigning ONE Flyweight World Champion Adriano Moraes of Brazil will defend his title against Reece “Lightning” McLaren of Australia. In the co-main event, former welterweight world title challenger Agilan “Alligator” Thani will take on Amitesh Chaubey.
Ticket information for ONE: VISIONS OF VICTORY is available at www.onefc.com.
Chatri Sityodtong, Chairman and CEO of ONE Championship, stated: “It’s going to be a phenomenal year for martial arts in Malaysia, as ONE Championship continues to showcase Asia’s greatest cultural treasure on the global stage. Malaysia has an incredible group of talented athletes and it is our privilege to share their amazing stories. ONE Flyweight World Champion Adriano Moraes returns to action to face rising star Reece McLaren in what should be an epic showdown of top flyweights.”
29-year-old Adriano “Mikinho” Moraes of Brazil is a Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt with well-rounded striking and grappling skills. He is the reigning ONE Flyweight World Champion, and one of the most highly-skilled and dominant world champions in martial arts. Rarely opposed in the ONE Championship cage, Moraes has thoroughly defeated all-comers in his division, including talented Filipino flyweight Danny “The King” Kingad in his most recent title defense. Moraes will next defend his title against Reece McLaren.
26-year-old Reece “Lightning” McLaren is an Australian flyweight from Toowoomba, Australia, who sports a black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu and a BJJ record of 270-28-0. In the cage, he owns a professional record of 10-5. McLaren made his ONE Championship debut in 2015 with a spectacular submission victory over Mark Striegl, and then followed up that win with a unanimous decision victory over the highly-regarded talent Muin Gafurov. In December of 2016, he challenged Bibiano Fernandes for the ONE Bantamweight World Championship, falling by split decision. In his most recent bout, McLaren impressed in his flyweight debut, submitting top contender Anatpong Bunrad with a first round brabo choke. Next for McLaren is a shot at reigning ONE Flyweight World Champion Adriano Moraes.
Agilan “Alligator” Thani of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia is a 22-year-old martial artist and one of the top welterweights in ONE Championship. Thani’s quick rise through the ranks has seen him amass a stellar 8-1 professional record, including a title shot against former ONE Welterweight World Champion Ben Askren in May of 2017. Although Thani fell short of victory against the American, he gained a great amount of experience as a result and has emerged as a more seasoned combatant. All but one of Thani’s victories have come by exciting finish. The young Malaysian has shown steady improvement in each outing and he will now face Amitesh Chaubey in his next appearance.
Amitesh Chaubey is a 27-year-old martial artist from Lucknow, India and a welterweight newcomer in ONE Championship. He owns a professional record of 8-5 and is a former SFL Welterweight Champion known for his knockout power. Primarily a boxing stylist who stifles opponents with his quick hands and fluid combinations, Chaubey joins a deep ONE Championship welterweight division looking for a new champion. He takes on former welterweight title challenger Agilan Thani in his promotional debut.
19-year-old Christian “The Warrior” Lee, younger brother of reigning ONE Women’s Atomweight World Champion “Unstoppable” Angela Lee, began his professional career on an absolute tear, railing off five straight victories by thrilling finish. He has impressed fans with his ability to seek out stoppage wins over top-caliber opponents. A former Pankration World Champion, Lee toppled Japanese veteran and former ONE Lightweight World Champion Kotetsu Boku in his most recent bout, winning by first-round technical knockout to improve his record to 8-1. Known as a creative and fluid striker with unorthodox grappling technique, Lee is now set to face another Japanese veteran in Kazunori Yokota.
Veteran martial artist Kazunori Yokota of Chiba, Japan is a martial arts fixture with over 12 years of professional experience under his belt. A champion of Japanese promotion, DEEP, Yokota is one of the toughest competitors at featherweight as he has constantly punished his opponents and grinded out impressive victories. Yokota made his ONE Championship debut in May of 2016, challenging former ONE Featherweight World Champion Marat Gafurov for the title. Yokota sports a stellar record of 26-7-3 and in his most recent bout, submitted his opponent in another promotion. Now, Yokota is set to take on the surging Christian Lee.
Malaysia’s Gianni Subba is a 25-year old flyweight talent from the capital city of Kuala Lumpur. He spends time carefully honing his craft with talented teammates, including brother Keanu, at Bali MMA in Indonesia. A winner of six of his last seven bouts, Subba is a seasoned athlete with a stellar 9-2 clip in his young career. Five of his nine wins have come either by submission or by crowd-pleasing knockout. In his next assignment, the crafty wushu specialist Danny Kingad poses a stern challenge.
Top flyweight talent from the famed Team Lakay of Baguio City, Danny “The King” Kingad is a regional wushu champion with a wushu record of 29-1 and a martial artist with a professional record of 8-1. A true warrior from the mountains of the Philippines and one of the top prospects to come out of the country, Kingad is a tremendous striker who possesses well-rounded grappling skills. In his most recent bout, Kingad suffered the first defeat of his career after being submitted by reigning ONE Flyweight World Champion Adriano Moraes in the first round. Kingad will now return to action against Gianni Subba.
Luis “Sapo” Santos is a martial arts veteran from Brazil with over 70 fights on his record and over half of his wins ending by devastating knockout. With a black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu and a penchant for spectacular finishes, Santos has emerged as one of the promotion’s most overwhelming physical specimens — a top contender capable of finishing any bout in a variety of different ways at any given moment. Known for his aggressiveness and brute strength, Santos looks to continue finding success inside the ONE Championship cage in his next bout against Kiamrian Abbasov.
24-year-old Kiamrian Abbasov of Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan is a martial arts veteran with a professional record of 18-3. He is currently riding a 10-bout win streak and hasn’t lost a match since 2015. Known as one of the top welterweights to emerge from Central Asia, Abbasov is a former Prime Selection GP Welterweight Champion with a handful of spectacular finishes. Of his 18 career victories, three have come by submission and nine by thrilling knockout. He makes his ONE Championship debut against the dangerous Luis Santos.
Women’s Brazilian jiu-jitsu legend Michelle Nicolini is a martial artist competing in the ONE Championship women’s strawweight division. An eight-time BJJ world champion and Hall-of-Famer, Nicolini’s elite grappling skills have brought her great success since transitioning to the cage, as she now owns a solid 4-1 professional record which includes four impressive submission victories. Nicolini made her ONE Championship debut in November of 2016, figuring in a first-round submission victory over Mona Samir. An extremely technical grappler, Nicolini is scheduled to take on Iryna Kyselova in her next appearance.
22-year-old Iryna “Delsa” Kyselova is a Europe West Fight Champion and a top-notch grappler. Hailing from Donskoe, Ukraine, she is 11-2 as a professional and will be making her ONE Championship debut. Representing YK Promotion, Kyselova is currently riding a four-bout winning streak. Nine of her total victories have come by finish, including seven submissions and two knockouts. A new player at women’s strawweight, Kyselova will take on grappling star Michelle Nicolini.
Ahmed “Wolverine” Mujtaba is a Pakistani martial artist competing in ONE Championship’s stacked featherweight division. He owns an impressive professional record of eight wins with only one defeat, with almost all of his wins coming by spectacular finish. Mujtaba is known for his tremendous grappling technique which has led to four submissions out of eight total victories. A former UGB MMA Featherweight Champion, Mujtaba makes his highly-anticipated return to the ONE Championship cage against Ma Jia Wen.
Freestyle wrestling standout Ma Jia Wen is a 21-year old martial artist from Tianjin, China with a 4-2 record. He is part of a rapid rising contingent of talented Chinese fighters who have shown great promise in combining the various aspects of striking and grappling. In his last outing, Ma Jia Wen he notched a second-round stoppage win Indonesia’s Yohan Mulia Legowo, marking his second-straight technical knockout victory. He has another tall order in front of him in his next bout, as he goes head-to-head with top talent Ahmed Mujtaba.
Former amateur standout “Jungle Cat” Muhammad Aiman of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia is one of the country’s fastest rising young martial arts talents. Featuring a well-rounded skill set, Aiman has impressed in his time inside the ONE Championship cage thus far, defeating Hisyam Samsudin by unanimous decision in his first match in the promotion before stopping Brazilian grappler Eduardo Novaes in his second outing. In his most recent contest, Aiman thoroughly dominated Chinese prospect Yang Fei to win a unanimous decision. The 23-year-old former MIMMA Featherweight Champion based out of Bali, Indonesia is now set to take on his next challenge in the Philippines’ Burn Soriano.
Burn “Hitman” Soriano of Ilocos Sur, Philippines, is coming off a tough contest against China’s Chen Lei last November. The Filipino featherweight features an aggressive style, with solid power and seasoned grappling technique leading to all of his wins to date coming by way of finish. His 15-second spinning back fist knockout of Indonesia’s Mario Sitya Wirawan in 2016 was one of the fastest stoppages in ONE history. A national kickboxing champion with a kickboxing record of 14-3, Soriano has shown steady improvement over his last few contests and now looks for victory next against Muhammad Aiman.
18-year-old “Shadow Cat” Jihin Radzuan of Johor Bahru, Malaysia is a highly-touted young martial arts prospect and former FIOGA Wushu WOrld Champion making her ONE Championship debut. A well-rounded competitor, Radzuan is a Muay Thai and wushu practitioner with a blue belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu. A former Southeast Asian Open Gold and Silver Medalist in Muay Thai, Radzuan is known for her varied striking skills and terrific knockout power. Radzuan will take her first step inside the ONE Championship cage in Kuala Lumpur to face Puja Tomar.
Atomweight competitor Puja Tomar is a martial artist from Muzaffarnagar, India with a professional record of three wins and two losses. With a knack for showcasing her solid striking skills, Tomar has recorded all three of her victories by knockout. Competing largely in her home country of India, the former India wushu champion Tomar now makes her second appearance on the biggest stage in Asian martial arts as she is set to face Jihin Radzuan in the ONE Championship cage.
Hisyam “Zephyrus” Samsudin of Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia is a former WBF Asia-Pacific Light Heavyweight Boxing Champion who trains at the highly-regarded Borneo Tribal Squad with former female strawweight talent Ann “Athena” Osman and coach AJ “Pyro” Lias Mansor. Samsudin likes to pepper opponents with heavy handed strikes, utilizing his world-class boxing base to break down opponents. Samsudin’s next assignment is against Jerome S. Paye.
Liberian martial artist Jerome S. Paye made his ONE Championship debut in February 2016 against China’s Li Hao Jie. Across his career, Paye has showcased a well-rounded set of techniques, stifling his opponents with an array of striking combinations and techniques. With the ability to make bouts difficult for any opponent, Paye has shown incredible heart and determination in his time inside the ONE Championship cage. A taekwondo specialist, this time Paye will take on Malaysia’s Hisyam Samsudin.
Striking specialist Riski “King Kong” Umar is a 25-year-old ONE Championship flyweight contender from Ternate, Indonesia. A Muay Thai and taekwondo practitioner, Umar is unbeaten as a professional, honing his skills out of Bali MMA with other world-class talents. In his most recent contest, Umar needed just one round to knock out Egi Rozten with punches. Training out of Bali, Indonesia, Umar is set to return in his third appearance inside the ONE cage, this time against Khon Sichan.
30-year-old Khon Sichan of Siem Reap, Cambodia is a striking specialist with dynamic martial arts background. A former KWC 1 Flyweight Tournament Champion, Sichan also sports a kun khmer record of 29-9-3 in addition to his ONE Championship record of 2-2. Representing PROKOUT Top Team and Team Phnom Penh MMA, Sichan returns to the ONE Championship cage to face the rising Riski Umar at a 62.5kg catchweight.
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