5 possible opponents for Ok Rae Yoon’s first title defense

Newly-crowned ONE lightweight world champion Ok Rae Yoon is on top of the world.

After a spectacular performance against 23-year-old superstar Christian Lee at ONE: Revolution, the South Korean now finds himself leading the pack as the top dog in ONE Championship’s stacked 170lb division.

That’s a pretty incredible accomplishment for someone who’s new to the promotion and was virtually unheralded. It has certainly been a phenomenal year for Ok Rae Yoon, who kicked things off in April by beating two of the best fighters at lightweight prior to facing Lee.

Ok Rae Yoon’s posted surprisingly dominant victories over former ONE world champion Marat ‘Cobra’ Gafurov and former UFC world champion Eddie ‘The Underground King’ Alvarez.

The wins earned him the nickname, ‘The Legend Killer,’ and rightfully so. Ok Rae Yoon’s accomplishments cannot be understated.

Capturing the lightweight world title in just his third fight in ONE Championship was certainly an astonishing feat, and Ok Rae Yoon has a fantastic future ahead of him.

The great thing about being the champion is that you often have the power to choose who is next, and Ok Rae Yoon has an entire division of contenders to pick from.

Here are five possible fights for Ok Rae Yoon’s first world title defense.

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#5. Ok Rae Yoon vs. Timofey Nastyukhin

Nastyukhin is one of the most exciting lightweights in ONE Championship. However, he was reduced to nothingness in his April loss to Lee. The usually powerful and ultra-aggressive knockout puncher underwhelmed in his performance and just didn’t appear to be himself. As a result, he was stopped just a little past the one-minute mark in the first round after Lee caught him napping on defense.

Still, with a near-80 percent finishing rate, ‘Tim Nasty’ remains a legitimate threat. He’s still a nightmare matchup for anyone in the division and is currently ranked No. 5.

Lee failed to get Ok Rae Yoon out of there early, but Nastyukhin sure could. This fight would promise absolute fireworks.

Conversely, Ok Rae Yoon doesn’t possess the quick finishing capabilities Lee does, but he knows how to win. Somehow, he always finds a way. A fight against Nastyukhin should be a little more exciting. It would be a war between two guys who love to let their hands go.

#4. Ok Rae Yoon vs. Saygid Guseyn Arslanaliev

Nicknamed ‘Dagi,’ Saygid Guseyn Arslanaliev is often considered the boogeyman of the ONE lightweight division. There are a lot of reasons why he’s arguably the most feared fighter at lightweight.

After making his professional mixed martial arts debut in 2014, Arslanaliev quickly climbed the ranks, ripping through eight of his first nine opponents. Arslanaliev has dispatched his foes effortlessly within the first five minutes of every fight. The only exceptions have been Japanese fighter Tetsuya Yamada, whom he finished in the third, and a disqualification loss to Georgi Stoyanov for illegal technical ground kicks.

The 26-year-old is very well-rounded and can fight both standing and on the ground. This presents an intriguing stylistic matchup for Ok Rae Yoon, who has proven himself against the toughest strikers and grapplers throughout his seven-year career.

Arslanaliev is a fast starter and will bring the fight right to Ok Rae Yoon’s grill if he doesn’t sense danger. However, Rae Yoon is a master at pulling off impossible victories. To the South Korean, it doesn’t matter how dangerous Arslanaliev is.

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#3. Zhang Lipeng

Former The Ultimate Fighter: China winner, ‘The Warrior’ Zhang Lipeng, is relatively new to ONE Championship. But he’s already impressed in his short time in the circle thus far.

Zhang made his ONE Championship debut last August, going the distance with two-time former ONE lightweight world champion Eduard ‘Landslide’ Folayang to earn a hard-fought unanimous decision victory. In that fight, Zhang showcased exceptional wrestling and grappling ability, controlling Folayang for the majority of their three-round contest.

Folayang and Ok Rae Yoon share a similar style, so fans have an inkling of how a battle between Zhang and Ok Rae Yoon would look. Furthermore, Zhang has over a decade of experience in the sport, which would undoubtedly work to his advantage.

This fight could come down to who enters with a more intelligent game plan.

#2. Ok Rae Yoon vs. Shinya Aoki

Who better to send into the fray to challenge the new lightweight champion than ONE Championship’s resident ‘cleaner-upper’ himself? Japanese legend and multi-time lightweight world champion Shinya ‘Tobikan Judan’ Aoki is just the man for the job.

At 38 years of age, Aoki is still as capable a finisher as ever. Since losing his lightweight strap to Lee in May 2019, Aoki has gone on to win his last four fights in the circle.

He tapped out former ONE featherweight world champion Honorio ‘The Rock’ Banario in less than a minute, decimated compatriot Kimihiro Eto, and shocked former LFA champion James Nakashima. To cap it all off, Aoki closed the book on his rivalry with Folayang by taking the trilogy earlier this year.

The bottom line is that Aoki is an enigma. Despite his age and experience (he’s fought for nearly two decades already), he remains one of the most dangerous lightweights in the world, bar none.

Can Ok Rae Yoon escape the jaws of Aoki’s vaunted grappling? There’s only one way to find out.

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#1. Ok Rae Yoon vs. Christian Lee

Last but not least, and probably the most likely scenario, is a Christian Lee vs. Ok Rae Yoon rematch. Given the way the first fight went down, a second meeting is inevitable. They have to run it back to erase any doubts.

In all likelihood, this is the direction ONE Championship seems to be headed. But we’ll have to wait and see if the rematch can be put together.

Lee appears adamant that the only fighter he will step into the circle against when he returns is Ok Rae Yoon. The 23-year-old feels he was robbed of the decision and the lightweight title.

The decision was unanimous in favor of Ok Rae Yoon, but there’s no denying the fight was a close one.

Lee appeared bothered by Ok Rae Yoon’s size and length, so expect the young former champion to make critical adjustments in the rematch. Ok Rae Yoon, for the most part, only knows how to fight one way, but he just does it so well.

All in all, there isn’t a fan out there who wouldn’t want to see Ok Rae Yoon fight Lee again.