Reece McLaren boasts of evolved game compared to Kairat Akhmetov

Reece McLaren believes his game has evolved, unlike his ONE Fight Night 10 opponent.

On May 5, ‘Lightning’ will return to the circle for a high-stakes flyweight showdown with streaking Kazakhstani standout Kairat Akhmetov.

Weeks away from their epic rematch, McLaren spoke with ONE Championship and shared some candid thoughts on his opponent:

“I think it’s unrecognizable [how much I’ve changed],” McLaren said “I think I’ve shown that I’m more diverse. I’m different. Totally different. I don’t want to bag on Akhmetov, but with all respect to him, it’s like, ‘Man, you’re still the same.’”

Reece McLaren is currently riding the momentum of back-to-back finishes in his last two outings. In 2022, the Aussie delivered a first-round submission against Xie Wei and followed it up with an even more impressive second-round knockout of Windson Ramos.

‘Lightning’ currently sits in the No. 4 spot in the flyweight rankings, but a win over ‘The Kazakh’ could push him into title contention.

Kairat Akhmetov will go into the bout a winner in his last five, which includes a 2019 unanimous decision victory over Reece McLaren at ONE: A New Era. That run also includes wins over flyweight notables Danny Kingad and Tatsumitsu Wada.

Should he earn another victory over McLaren at ONE Fight Night 10, Akhmetov will be all but guaranteed a shot at the winner of Demetrious Johnson vs. Adriano Moraes III.

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Reece McLaren believes his bout with Kairat Akhmetov is a title eliminator

Reece McLaren believes that a victory over Kairat Akhmetov will secure his spot as the top contender for the ONE flyweight world championship.

He told ONE:

“I’ll be on a three-fight win streak [if I beat Akhmetov]. I will have just beaten the number two. So that has to put me first in line. I truly believe the winner of this one will be fighting for gold. So yeah, even more reason to tune in.”

It’s hard to imagine anyone else getting the opportunity besides the winner of McLaren vs. Akhmetov on May 5. But before we can look ahead to the future of the flyweight division, reigning titleholder Demetrious Johnson will settle some business with former flyweight king Adriano Moraes.

The pair have squared off on two separate occasions with each scoring a highlight-reel-worthy knockout over the other. ONE Fight Night 10 at the 1stBank Center in Colorado will play host to the third and final meeting between the two flyweight GOAT contenders.

Amazon Prime Video subscribers in North America can catch all the action live and for free in U.S. primetime on May 5.