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Welcome to today's edition of the daily Sportskeeda ONE Championship News Roundup, where we present the promotion's most important stories.
Today, we’ll discuss Marcus ‘Buchecha’ Almeida wanting to fight Anatoly Malykhin, John Lineker downplaying the power of Fabricio Andrade’s strikes, and Adriano Moraes looking to score another knockout against Demetrious Johnson.
#3. Marcus ‘Buchecha’ Almeida willing to fight Anatoly Malykhin despite lack of animosity
Getting contentious with opponents is nothing new in the sport of mixed martial arts. However, Marcus ‘Buchecha’ Almeida can make do with the opposite.
The Brazilian jiu-jitsu legend feels he doesn’t need to have any animosity towards double world champion Anatoly Malykhin for them to have a match in ONE Championship.
In an interview with the South China Morning Post, Almeida said he’ll go in if he’s offered a fight against the Russian brawler:
“Of course, if we have to fight, we will do it. It’s part of the job. I really like him, he’s a guy that works really hard and he deserves everything he’s getting."
‘Buchecha’ is a 17-time BJJ world champion and is 4-0 in his MMA career. Malykhin, meanwhile, owns both the ONE light heavyweight and interim heavyweight world titles.
Both men also have perfect records in ONE Championship, with an absurd 100 percent finish rate between them. The two heavyweight stars made their ONE Championship debuts in 2021, making them two of the fastest-rising names in the promotion.
Catch Almeida's interview below:
#2. John Lineker says Fabricio Andrade’s punches were only superficial damage
John Lineker and Fabricio Andrade’s first match for the vacant ONE bantamweight world title has been teeming with storylines. The plot points keep on coming heading into their rematch at ONE Fight Night 7.
The rivals first faced each other at ONE on Prime Video 3 in October 2022, but their bout ended in a disappointing no contest after Andrade inadvertently hit Lineker with a knee to the groin in the third.
Observers also felt that Andrade was on his way to a knockout finish with how he dominated Lineker, but ‘Hands of Stone’ downplayed the power behind the strikes ‘Wonder Boy’ threw at him.
In an interview with ONE Championship, Lineker said:
“I watched my fight against him again. Inside the cage, it’s one thing. Watching it on TV you have another vision. The fact is that I let him land a lot of jabs, which ended up hurting my face a lot. I wasn’t feeling his punches so much. I wasn’t afraid of his punches, so I took those jabs and ended up getting a pretty bruised face.”
Though Lineker and Andrade have only faced each other once, their rivalry is already turning out to be one of the most intriguing in ONE Championship history.
The highly anticipated rematch is set for February 24 at the iconic Lumpinee Boxing Stadium. It will be broadcast live and for free to all Prime Video subscribers in North America.
#1. Adriano Moraes looking to showcase striking prowess in trilogy bout with Demetrious Johnson
Adriano Moraes produced one of the greatest knockouts in MMA history when he finished off Demetrious Johnson in their first meeting for the ONE flyweight world championship. Now, he plans to tack on one more highlight reel finish.
‘Mikinho’ is heading into his trilogy bout against Johnson at ONE Fight Night 10 in ONE Championship’s first on-site event in the United States. This time, however, Moraes is challenging for the flyweight gold.
Johnson and Moraes are 1-1, with both stars taking a knockout win against each other during their two meetings in ONE Championship.
Speaking about his upcoming world title fight against arguably the greatest of all time, Moraes told the South China Morning Post that he wants to finish off the American legend in spectacular fashion:
“I can’t wait to take my belt back and be the winner in this trilogy. But of course, I want a knockout again. I want to move a lot and give my best and show my Muay Thai skills.”
Moraes scored the first win in the series when he knocked out Johnson with a cracking knee in the second round of their ONE on TNT I fight in April 2021 to retain the ONE flyweight world title.
A little over a year later and it was Johnson dealing the damage. Johnson finished Moraes off with a flying knee in the fourth round of their ONE on Prime Video main event to grab hold of the ONE flyweight world championship.
ONE Fight Night 10 emanates from Colorado’s 1stBank Center and will be available live and for free to all Prime Video subscribers in North America.
Catch Moraes' interview below:
