3 Major Reasons To Watch ONE: WARRIOR'S DREAM

ONE Championship will make a thunderous return to Jakarta, Indonesia this coming Saturday, 17 November, and anticipation is rapidly building for the massive event at Stadium Istora.

Two of the promotion’s best welterweights will square off for the vacant World Title in the main event of ONE: WARRIOR’S DREAM, and the bout will be supported by a plethora of exciting kickboxing, Muay Thai, and mixed martial arts contests.

As always, there is a myriad of reasons to tune in to the world’s most exciting martial arts action, but here are the top three.

#1 A New World Champion Will Be Crowned

The ONE Welterweight World Title will not be vacant much longer, as two men are ready to claim it as their own.

Sweden’s Zebaztian “The Bandit” Kadestam (10-4) challenged for the gold before, and he faces another formidable opponent the second time around, as unbeaten American Tyler McGuire (11-0) hopes to snatch the title for himself.

“The Bandit” has a 90 percent finishing ratio, and both of his ONE victories have come via knockout. In his debut, he shocked the world by finishing Luis Santos with knees, and he dispatched Agilan Thani with punches and elbows in his last bout.

McGuire has eight finishes of his own, but submissions are his forte. The Sikjitsu representative did not tap out Santos in his debut, but he dominated the Brazilian en route to a unanimous decision.

On paper, it will be a grappler versus striker match-up, but each man has enough skills in other departments to make things interesting wherever the contest plays out.

#2 Nieky Holzken’s ONE Debut

ONE Super Series has seen many kickboxing greats in action already, and fans in Jakarta will get to see another make his bow in the world’s largest martial arts organization.

Nieky “The Natural” Holzken (90-14, 1 NC) returns to kickboxing for his ONE debut, after taking time away from the sport for the past year to make a run at a boxing world title.

The Dutchman is a multiple-time world champion who is known for his polished combinations and knockout power – particularly with his punches.

He takes on Brazil’s Cosmo “Good Boy” Alexandre (69-18-1), who debuted in The Home Of Martial Arts with an emphatic second-round stoppage of Elliot Compton.

Alexandre can also do it all and has the achievements to back it up, but as he showed in April, his knees are to be feared more than any of his other weapons.

This contest will be a rematch from their bout in May 2010, which Holzken won by decision. Both men have come a long way since then, so that result is likely to have little bearing on what could be an instant classic.

#3 The Best Of Indonesian Mixed Martial Arts

In true ONE style, there are world-class martial artists from around the globe in action, but the bouts featuring local talent is not to be missed.

Jakarta is bursting with first-rate athletes, and many of them will step onto the global stage for martial arts on Saturday with the energy of the entire arena pushing them toward victory.

No homegrown talent is likely to get a bigger reception than Priscilla Hertati Lumban Gaol, who will chase her fifth win of 2018 against the Philippines’ Angelie “D Explorer” Sabanal on the main card.

Elipitua Siregar, Adrian “Papua Badboy” Mattheis, and Putri Padmi feature in their hometown, and will be more motivated than ever to put on a show in front of their fans.

Their compatriots Egi Rozten, Aziz Calim, and Dwi Ani Retno Wulan will also feel the love of their countrymen from the stands, in a landmark night for their careers on 17 November.