December 07, 2024

ONE Championship: 4 burning questions ahead of massive weekend for Pinoy fighters

ONE Championship: 4 burning questions ahead of massive weekend for Pinoy fighters
It's a a busy stretch for Pinoys in ONE Championship. Photos (c) ONE Championship

It’s going to be a busy weekend for Filipino fight fans when ONE Championship holds back-to-back events starting this Friday evening with ONE Friday Fights 86, followed by the massive ONE 169: Malykhin vs. Reug Reug on Saturday morning.

Fil-Am striking star Jackie Buntan takes another shot at gold in the co-main event of ONE 169 against Anissa Meksen for the ONE Women’s Strawweight Kickboxing World Title.

Third-ranked flyweight Danny Kingad will try to even the score against #1-ranked contender Adriano Moraes in a rematch of their 2017 bout. While another Fil-Am striker in Eddie Abasolo takes on Mohamed Younes Rabah in a featherweight Muay Thai fight.

The night before that, Islay Erika Bomogao makes her highly-anticipated debut when she battles Japanese striker Fuu in a 100-pound catchweight Muay Thai bout in a match that will keep Pinoys glued to their seats on Friday night.

Carlos Alvarez of Team Lakay joins her on that card when he battles Mirza Aliev in featherweight MMA action, as Fritz Biagtan also targets a bounce-back win when he takes on Seyed Ali Asli in a flyweight MMA tilt.

With such a busy stretch for Pinoys, let’s take a look at some of the biggest questions that are about to be answered this weekend.

Will Danny Kingad finally get his breakthrough?

With the impeccable Demetrious Johnson having rode off into the sunset, the path to the ONE Flyweight MMA World Title suddenly became clearer for Kingad.

But to get there, he must prove that he’s ready to take the next step. What better way to show that than by getting one back against former tormentor and once divisional king Moraes.

Kingad has always been hanging around the top of the flyweight rankings, but he’s always faltered in big fights too. A win here could finally set him up for a coronation somewhere down the line, but another loss against an established contender would show that he’s still not on the elite level.

How will Jackie Buntan deal with Anissa Meksen’s experience?

There’s no doubt that Buntan is one of the best female strikers in ONE Championship, but standing in her way is probably the greatest female kickboxer to ever do it in Meksen.

With two decades of experience under her belt, Meksen perhaps has seen it all in the striking world. She’ll also be highly motivated in this fight, being that a ONE Championship belt is the only thing missing from her legendary career.

Buntan has stated that she’ll be showcasing “new adaptability,” as she’s confident she’ll overcome whatever Meksen throws at her in the ring.

If she does that, she’ll have the distinction of being the first fighter with Filipino lineage to win a ONE World Title in the striking arts.

Is Islay Erika Bomogao the next big star from the Philippines?

Bomogao is a complete package when it comes to athlete marketability.

Her lethal skills in Muay Thai alongside her bubbly, charismatic personality amassed her quite the following long before she even turned professional.

Now, it’s go-time for the 24-year-old fighter from Baguio City.

After a glistening amateur career that saw her win a Southeast Asian Games gold medal and rank at the top of IFMA’s 45-kilogram division, Bomogao is out to take the next step when she debuts in ONE Championship’s Muay Thai division, inside the legendary Lumpinee Stadium no less.

An impressive win here would certainly push Bomogao’s stock to the moon. After all, the only thing in between her and superstardom is a solid outing on ONE’s ultimate proving ground for rising stars.

Is this the time for Carlos Alvarez and Fritz Biagtan to join teammates?

Alvarez and Biagtan’s hunt for the US$100,000 contract with ONE Championship continues when they take on different foes this Friday.

Both come from established teams, with Alvarez proudly representing Team Lakay and Biagtan working with the Zambaongas over at T-Rex MMA.

The pair want nothing more than to join their highly touted teammates in ONE, and they could make it happen with impressive rebound wins.

Both fighters are coming off deflating losses, which stopped their respective hot starts in the ONE Friday Fights circuit. Now, they’re surely eager to bounce back.  

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