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Martin Nguyen prefers to do his talking inside the Circle.
On Sunday, January 28, the former two-division ONE world champion will head to Ariake Arena in Tokyo, Japan for a high-stakes scrap with top-ranked featherweight contender, Garry Tonon. With major title implications at play, ‘The Situ-Asian’ is ready to add another impressive win to his already iconic career and potentially secure himself another shot at ONE gold.
Speaking with the South China Morning Post ahead of his first appearance of 2024, Martin Nguyen shared some insight into his impending return and why there hasn’t been much in the way of trash-talking with his opponent.
“Yeah I feel that we both arguably respect each other's skill set,” Nguyen said. “I've been in the game for a while, I don't need to talk any animosity against my opponent, because I don't know him. I don't. And it's not like that for me anyway when it comes to martial arts.” (at 01:50)
‘The Situ-Asian’ will be looking for his second straight win after scoring a unanimous decision over Leonardo Casotti in his last outing.
Garry Tonon seeking another title opportunity with a win over Martin Nguyen
While Martin Nguyen knows what it feels like to be a world champion, claiming both the ONE featherweight and lightweight world titles in 2017, Garry Tonon is still trying to climb that mountain.
Earning six straight wins and five finishes, ‘The Lion Killer’ earned himself a shot at then-featherweight champion Thanh Le at ONE: Lights Out in March 2022. Going for a heel hook submission almost immediately, Tonon left himself open to a series of hammer fists that ultimately put his lights out in less than a minute.
Learning from his mistakes, Tonon has bounced back with back-to-back submission victories against Johnny Nunez and Shamil Gasanov. If he adds another impressive win against Nguyen, Tonon will likely find himself in pole position to face the winner of Tang Kai vs. Thanh Le at ONE 166 in March.
ONE 165: Superlek vs. Takeru airs live on Sunday, January 28, and will be available via global pay-per-view at watch.onefc.com.
