ONE Championship: “None of them are ahead of me” - John Lineker insists he’s still the most deserving for a bantamweight MMA title shot

Former undisputed ONE bantamweight MMA world champion 'Hands of Stone' John Lineker of Brazil maintains he is next in line for another crack at the division's throne.

Lineker captured the undisputed title after defeating veteran and legend 'The Flash' Bibiano Fernandes in 2022. However, he went life and death with Brazilian countryman 'Wonder Boy' Fabricio Andrade, with their first fight ending in a no contest, and with Andrade winning the second encounter via fourth-round technical knockout.

Speaking to ONE Championship in a recent interview, Lineker says he and Andrade is the fight to make, and doesn't see any other contender worthy.

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'Hands of Stone' told the world's largest martial arts organization:

"I don’t see any other candidate for the title other than myself. Regardless of whether or not I have faced the athletes in the top five, I know that none of them are ahead of me in the rankings."

Needless to say, fans would love to see a third fight between John Lineker and Fabricio Andrade, which will surely produce fireworks.

John Lineker says fans should forget about first fight with Fabricio Andrade: "An illegal blow was made"

'Hands of Stone' John Lineker wants to erase the memory of his first fight with 'Wonder Boy' Fabricio Andrade.

And as he lobbies for another showdown with the reigning bantamweight MMA king, Lineker is looking to drum up interest in their rivalry anew. He told ONE Championship:

"We talk about a trilogy, but in reality, I see it as a second fight, since I disregard the first one because it was a fight without a result. An illegal blow was made that made it impossible for me to return to the fight. So, I disregard this fight."

Stay tuned to Sportskeeda MMA for all the latest news and updates surrounding John Lineker's next fight.

About the author

Dan is an MMA writer with 10+ years of overall experience. Before his ongoing tenure at Sportskeeda, Dan got the opportunity to be at the forefront of the sport by contributing to ONE Championship and Fight Game Asia. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Psychology.

Dan’s connection to MMA started during the early days of the UFC and ONE Championship. He previously practiced boxing and ranks Demetrious Johnson, Anderson Silva, Georges St-Pierre, Jon Jones, and Fedor Emelianenko as the top five MMA fighters of all time.

He has covered several events onsite and on the ground for ONE Championship and hopes to continue doing so. He ensures that he churns out accurate articles by citing only legitimate sources and getting firsthand accounts through exclusive interviews whenever required.

Dan feels MMA fighter pay seems like an issue because it often gets compared to what fighters earn in boxing but that MMA will eventually catch up in the future.

His other interests include soccer and video games.

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Edited by Jigyanshushri Mahanta