5 of the most stacked weight divisions in ONE Championship

#4. ONE Women’s Atomweight Division

If we could describe the ONE women’s atomweight division's plethora of 52.2kg stars in a couple of words, it would be brave, bold, and brilliant.

Angela Lee has reigned supreme over the division since she grabbed the gold in May 2016. The 25-year-old Singaporean-American is the only athlete in the history of the organization to hold the ONE gold for more than 2000 days.

The ONE women’s atomweight World Grand Prix last year was the perfect tournament to showcase the growth and evolution of female fighters worldwide. Eight of the world's best competitors vied for a chance to be the winner of the Grand Prix.

Ultimately, it was former ONE kickboxing and Muay Thai world champion Stamp Fairtex who lifted the tournament belt against India’s wrestling sensation Ritu Phogat.

Stamp, the top-ranked contender, and Phogat (4) are the cream of the crop when it comes to Muay Thai and wrestling respectively. However, fellow ranked stars like Denice Zamboanga (2), Ham Seo Hee (3), and Meng Bo (5), have shown that they too can churn out victories by using their wushu, Muay Thai, and grappling skills.

Outside the top five are where things get a lot more interesting in terms of skill set and variety of competitors from young teenaged sensations to experienced veteran athletes.

There are fighters like undefeated judoka Japanese star Itsuki Hirata, who has four finishes in her five fights, Ukrainian submission expert Alyona Rassohyna, who boasts an 85 percent finishing rate, and Filipina prospects like Gina Iniong and Jenelyn Olsim.

Indonesia’s Priscilla Hertati Lumban Gaol and Malaysia’s Jihin Radzuan are well-rounded fighters too. Combined, the pair have six finishes to date.

Japanese MMA veteran Mei Yamaguchi remains a huge threat to anyone in the division. 17-year-old Victoria Lee, meanwhile, has already marked her name as the promotion’s top star to watch in 2022.

Strawweight queen Xiong Jing Nan is also eyeing an atomweight world title rematch against Angela Lee at some point this year.

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#3. ONE Flyweight Division

The ONE flyweight division has been one of the most outstanding divisions in the ONE roster since the very beginning. Today, the 61.2kg bracket still stands out as one of the best to watch, largely due to competitors who pack pace, power, technical abilities, and so much more.

At the time of writing, Adriano Moraes has been the division king for 1078 days. It is his third reign. That said, the only other two men to have held the gold – Geje Eustaquio and Kairat Akhmetov – are still very much in the world title frame today.

Adriano Moraes knocked out MMA GOAT-contender Demetrious Johnson to successfully defend his world title in his last outing in the Circle. The KO over ‘Mighty Mouse’ was Moraes’ 13th finish in his stellar career. What makes this division so exciting is that the ranked contenders behind him – Johnson (1), Yuya Wakamatsu (2), Kairat Akhmetov (4), and Reece McLaren (5) have a combined 54 stoppage victories between them.

Then, there are competitors like Team Lakay’s dynamic duo, No.3-ranked Danny Kingad and Geje Eustaquio have fought some of these big names all the way to the final bell. Their warrior spirit and wushu-based unorthodox striking skills have troubled the division’s biggest stars' – be it Moraes’ and McLaren’s Brazilian jiu-jitsu, Akhmetov’s superior wrestling, or Wakamatsu’s technicality in the boxing department.

Tatsumitsu Wada can trouble anyone with his judo and karate-dominant style, while Indonesian star Eko Roni Saputra has already showcased his knockout skill just as much as his wrestling.

Last but certainly not least, is China's Xie Wei. The stars of the flyweight divison may all be great in some way or another, but none own a 100 percent finishing rate, except this warrior. All eight of his wins on the global stage have come by way of knockout.