ONE Fight Night 7 is scheduled for Bangkok this Friday night (US time). The card will take place at Lumpinee Stadium and will be headlined by a bantamweight title rematch between John Lineker and Fabricio Andrade.
All the action will take place inside a ring, not a cage. Last time out, Andrade was towering over Lineker when he inadvertently kneed the Brazilian so hard in the groin that he couldn’t continue.
Adrian Mattheis vs. Zelang Zhaxi (Straw weight)
Adrian Mattheis (10-6) is a veteran of 16 ONE Championship fights. The Indonesian has been on the list since 2016 and is best known for knocking out former strawweight champion Alex Silva.
Zelang Zhaxi (16-7-1) was knocked out in the first round by Danial Williams in his ONE Championship debut.
Linda Darrow vs. Victoria Souza (Atomic weight)
Linda Darrow (6-0) spent time training at the UFC Performance Institute and was clearly scouted by the promotion. But she signed with ONE Championship instead and will fight for the first time since 2018.
Victoria Souza (6-1) was stopped by Victoria Lee on her ONE Championship debut. The Brazilian suffered a serious arm injury in that fight but is coming off a small local win in her native country.
Kickboxing: Andrei Stoica vs Françesco Xhaja (Light heavyweight)
Romania star Andre Stoica is fresh off a decisive victory over Giannis Stoforidis but has been out of action for almost a year. He is best known for his spectacular knockout win over Anderson Silva in 2019.
Francesco Xhaja is coming off a stoppage loss to Rade Opacic. This has fight of the night potential with both men happy to stay in fists and trade punches.
Kickboxing: Saemapetch Fairtex vs. Zhang Chenglong (Bantam-weight)
Saemapetch Fairtex will fight under kickboxing rules for the first time since signing for ONE Championship despite being no stranger to the sport having fought in China. He comes into the match after a stunning knockout win over Rittewada Petchyindee that ended a two-game losing streak.
Zhang Chenglong has lost five consecutive fights for the ONE Championship. But he’s faced the best fighters on the roster and been the distance each time, with two of the split decision losses, so it’s not as bad as his recent record suggests.
Eko Roni Saputra vs. Danny Kingad (Flyweight)
Eko Roni Saputra (7-1) enters this contest on a seven-fight winning streak, but none of those wins have come at the expense of ranked opponents. This clearly represents a step forward for the Indonesian wrestler.
Danny Kingad (14-3) will know he has the advantage over his opponent in a scoring game. The Filipino will have to stuff his opponent’s takedowns and use his footwork to get in and out and do some damage on foot.
Submission Grappling: Danielle Kelly vs. Ayaka Miura (catchweight)
Danielle Kelly is a decorated black belt in BJJ. She will attack relentlessly with submissions and is a heavy favorite against an opponent known for MMA, not submission grappling.
Ayaka Miura is very dangerous with locks and has many finishes as an Americana. But the judoka seems outmatched here, even if she has a slight height advantage to compensate.
Martin Nguyen vs. Shamil Gasanov (Lightweight)
Shamil Gasanov was originally scheduled to face Nguyen but pulled out just 10 days before the fight. Substitute Razhab Shaydullaev (6-0) stopped every opponent he faced.
Martin Nguyen (19-6) represented some of the biggest names in the ONE Championship with his overhand right. But the strategy has become less effective over the years and with three losses in his last four fights, he clearly has to find different ways to win.
Muay Thai: Tawanchai PKSaenchaigym (c) against Jamal Yusupov (for the featherweight title)
Tawanchai PKSaenchaigym will make the first defense of his Muay Thai featherweight title. He is left-handed and is very dangerous with his right and left kicks to the left.
Jamal Yusupov’s main claim to fame is knocking out Yodsaenklai Fairtex. The Russian southpaw is coming off a victory over Jo Nattawut, but the aforementioned fighters are past their prime as Tawanchai is at the height of his powers.
John Lineker vs. Fabricio Andrade (for the bantamweight title)
John Lineker has well and truly earned the nickname “hands of stone”. He likes to sit on his shots and puts real power into his shots but couldn’t keep up with the speed and accuracy of Fabricio Andrade last time out.
Fabricio Andrade would be the champion if he hadn’t landed that misguided low kick when Lineker was seriously injured. His straight knees are devastating and if it goes like the first fight, he should win from distance.
The entire ONE Fight Night 7 fight card will be available for free in North America on Amazon Prime for subscribers, and in other territories using the newly launched app which you can download here.
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