Full Card Revealed For ONE: BEYOND THE HORIZON In Shanghai
ONE Championship will return with a blockbuster event on Saturday, 8 September.
The world’s largest martial arts organization will hold its next spectacle, ONE: BEYOND THE HORIZON, at the Baoshan Arena in Shanghai, China.
The ONE Women’s Strawweight World Championship will be contested in the main event, and will be supported by a stacked card full of top contenders from the mixed martial arts and ONE Super Series ranks.
Without any further ado, here is the full card for ONE: BEYOND THE HORIZON.
A Strawweight World Title Showdown
Fresh off a successful first title defense, “The Panda” Xiong Jing Nan (15-1) will defend the ONE Women’s Strawweight World Championship for the second time.
The 30-year-old Chinese athlete will attempt to maintain her perfect record in ONE Championship, and retain the belt when she squares off against promotional newcomer Samara “Marituba” Santos (12-5) in the evening’s headline attraction.
Santos, a Salvaterra Marajo Fight Strawweight Champion, is a fierce knockout artist who also possesses a dangerous grappling game. Of the Brazilian’s dozen career victories, six are by knockout, and another three by submission.
“Marituba” should provide another stiff test for Xiong, who is going for her fourth ONE victory in eight months.
Lightweight Contenders Clash
After each man identified the other as an opponent that could help move their career forward, two of the most skilled men in the lightweight division will collide at ONE: BEYOND THE HORIZON.
Former ONE Featherweight World Champion Honorio “The Rock” Banario (13-6) will face-off against Singaporean Muay Thai Champion Amir Khan (10-3) in a battle of surging contenders.
Ever since moving up a weight class, Banario has been unstoppable. The Team Lakay striker is on a five-bout win streak, and following his victory over Adrian Pang at ONE: HEROES OF HONOR in April, he mentioned Khan as a possible next opponent.
The Evolve MMA product liked the sound of that.
Khan, who also defeated Pang in November, is coming off a huge win over South Korea’s Sung Jong Lee at ONE: UNSTOPPABLE DREAMS in May.
This bout will undoubtedly produce fireworks, and will move the winner one step closer to the coveted ONE Lightweight World Title opportunity they desire.
Fierce Featherweight Finishers
The Team Lakay versus Evolve MMA battle extends to a second bout in Shanghai.
A pair of elite featherweight talents will display their skills once again, as Edward “The Ferocious” Kelly (10-5) squares off against former ONE Featherweight World Title challenger Christian “The Warrior” Lee (9-2).
Like Banario, Kelly is looking to build on Team Lakay’s amazing success in 2018 with an emphatic victory. The Filipino brings an impressive 90 percent finishing rate into the contest, and has already hit one of the fastest knockouts in ONE history this year.
However, it will be difficult to defeat – and finish – Lee.
Every one of “The Warrior’s” victories has concluded via stoppage, and with nine in his ONE bouts, Lee shares the record for the most finishes in the organization with his teammate, Khan.
He will join his training partner in attempting to add to that number with another dynamic showing in Shanghai.
Bantamweights And Strawweight Action
Two bantamweight thrillers will rock China in September.
First, unbeaten Japanese athlete Daichi Takenaka (11-0-1) looks to build off the momentum of his successful promotional debut in February, when he defeated former World Title challenger Dae Hwan Kim.
He is scheduled to clash with Guam’s Roman “Boom” Alvarez (8-2), who showed a glimpse of his explosive potential against top contender Leandro Issa in June.
Joining them on the bill is Chinese bantamweight “Rock Man” Chen Lei (8-0), who will put his spotless record on the line against the always-entertaining “Jungle Cat” Muhammad Aiman (4-2).
Chen is coming off one of the most exciting bouts of the year, as he showed his warrior spirit to triumph in a back-and-forth battle with Ahmad Qais Jasoor at ONE: SPIRIT OF A WARRIOR.
Aiman will aim to hit a career-best three-match winning streak after he began his year with a commanding defeat of Rin Saroth at ONE: VISIONS OF VICTORY.
There will also be a strawweight contest on the card, as Indonesian Wrestling Champion Elipitua Siregar (28-6 in wrestling) continues his transition into mixed martial arts.
He will attempt to build on his debut win from ONE: GRIT AND GLORY in May against three-time Cambodian National Kun Khmer Champion Phat Soda (150-25 in Kun Khmer).
Fantastic ONE Super Series Contests
Fans are in for a treat, as a quartet of ONE Super Series match-ups is on deck for ONE: BEYOND THE HORIZON.
There will be three Muay Thai contests on the show, one of which will feature two-time Muay Thai World Champion Tukkatatong Petpayathai (241-33-2) against Lion Fight Welterweight World Champion Ognjen Topic (32-20-2) in a meeting of bantamweights.
They will be joined by Chinese hero Han Zi Hao (57-14), who squares off against Stergos “Greek Dynamite” Mikkios (19-9-2) in another bantamweight contest.
Also, WBC Japan Muay Thai Champion Yukinori Ogasawara (15-4-4), who scored a sensational spinning back-elbow KO in June, will face two-time Muay Thai World Champion Hakim Hamech (42-8) in a flyweight tilt.
Completing the selection of all-striking affairs is a kickboxing match between two promotional debutants.
Eight-time Kickboxing World Champion Daniel “The Rock” Dawson (53-13) will meet ISKA Kickboxing World Champion Mustapha “The Flying Dragon” Haida (38-7-3) at a catch weight of 72.5 kilograms.
