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The headlining bouts of ONE Fight Night 14 fully deserve their place on the card, but matches down the ladder have as much riding on them as the world title fights at the top.
One such match is the one between top-ranked bantamweight MMA contenders Stephen Loman and John Lineker.
Loman is the No.2 contender in the volatile bantamweight MMA division, while Lineker, the former ONE bantamweight MMA world champion, is at No.1.
The heavy-handed strikers are both gunning for a shot at reigning ONE bantamweight world champion Fabricio Andrade, and their match this Friday at the Singapore Indoor Stadium will see who gets to take on the bantamweight king.
This match already has the potential to steal the entire show, and Sportskeeda MMA’s ONE Championship team put together their expert opinion on who’s getting that coveted world title shot.
Before the entire card streams live and free in North America via Prime Video, here are the predictions for the pivotal match between John Lineker and Stephen Loman.
James De Rozario: Stephen Loman by decision
I'm going with Stephen Loman for this one, all day long.
The 28-year-old is well-balanced in all facets of his game, and that will be his main key to victory against a more one-dimensional athlete like Lineker.
Moreover, he doesn't rush in during exchanges even if things don't go as planned - something that will prove useful when he's trading bombs with 'Hands of Stone' in the pocket.
He will have to cut angles, close the distance, and trade with the Brazilian. Although he'll be taking a couple of truck-like shots, Loman should be able to sneak in a fake and a takedown and control from there.
Lineker might make life difficult for 'The Sniper' wherever the match goes, though. But I see the latter coming out on top with submissions and unorthodox striking, doing enough on the feet and the canvas to persuade the judges at circle-side.
Mikey Murillo: Stephen Loman by decision
It is not going to be an easy fight for Team Lakay’s Stephen Loman against John Lineker but I still expect him to come away with a decision win on fight night.
Being the bigger, fresher, and younger fighter of the two will work to the advantage of ‘The Sniper’ and he is going to be a handful for ‘Hands of Stone'.
Of course, on the flipside there is the concern of ring rust as Loman last fought in November while Lineker has had two fights already this year, the last one just in August where he was impressive with a TKO win.
But Loman has been preparing for a big showdown since last year against reigning world champion Fabricio Andrade and he is coming in against Lineker ready and in shape.
It is Loman’s time to shine in the division and his upcoming fight would serve to highlight that.
Ted Razon: Stephen Loman by decision
This is truly a risky matchup for Loman. After all, he has everything to lose in this one, particularly his status as the next man in line for champ Fabricio Andrade.
As we’ve seen time and time again, all it takes is one clean shot from Lineker and it’s lights out for anybody. However, I do believe that Loman’s skills have evolved and he can nullify the Brazilian’s world-ending hooks.
I expect Loman’s footwork to shine in this fight and circle away from the trajectory of Lineker’s power shots. Let’s not forget the Filipino can also cause a ton of damage with his left hand, which should connect once he gets used to Lineker’s rhythm.
‘Hands of Stone’ also likes to shoot for takedowns once he gets hurt on the feet, and I don’t think he can outmuscle Loman in that regard. ‘The Sniper’ has become a formidable grappler, as we’ve seen in his massive victory over Bibiano Fernandes.
As long as he stays away from Lineker’s fight-ending blows, I expect Loman to register another dominant victory.
Vince Richards: Stephen Loman by decision
The fight between John Lineker and Stephen Loman presents two schools of striking, which are boxing and Wushu.
Lineker is the perfect example of an MMA fighter using the brute force of boxing to end his opponents. Loman, meanwhile, uses Wushu’s movement and trickery to put his foes to sleep.
These two fighters use two different ways of striking, but both are lethal with their hands.
Although both Loman and Lineker are natural strikers, I wouldn’t be surprised if the Filipino star chooses to use his grappling for nearly half of the fight.
Loman is an underrated grappler and he used his uncanny wrestling to utterly dominate Brazilian legend and former ONE bantamweight MMA world champion Bibiano Fernandes in his last match.
I expect Loman to move in and out of Loman’s wild attacks and maybe tag the Brazilian brawler with a couple of stinging counterpunches in the exchanges.
Of course, it won’t be easy but I see Loman taking the fight by decision. There’s a slim chance of a knockout for both fighters, but the judges’ scorecards are the more plausible decider in this meeting.
