“Reug Reug” Oumar Kane

“Reug Reug” Oumar Kane came to ONE Championship through a less traditional route.

The native of Senegal was brought up as one of six siblings in Thiaroye sur Mer, a small town on the outskirts of the capital city of Dakar. At age 16, Kane started to practice the traditional techniques of “mbapatte” wrestling, which originated hundreds of years ago among the Serer people. With the encouragement of his family, “Reug Reug” moved to a Serer village to refine his new art.

After leaving home, Kane competed in hundreds of bouts in “lutte avec frappe” – a form of wrestling that takes place in a sandy arena and allows strikes. Though it’s unknown to many mixed martial arts fans, it’s a box office draw in the West African nation.

Kane returned to Dakar at age 20 and became a star, amassing a perfect 16-0 record at the prestigious Stade Demba Diop Stadium against some of Senegal’s finest lutte avec frappe athletes.

He became an international social media darling after making the transition to MMA in 2019, due to his hulking frame and fascinating back story. “Reug Reug” quickly caught the attention of ONE Championship scouts and made his promotional debut in 2021, defeating four-time Muay Thai and Kickboxing World Champion Alain Ngalani inside a single round.

Since then, Kane has become a force in the organization’s heavyweight division, delighting fans with his extraordinary physical strength and all-action performances in the Circle.