Lead Cards Announced For All ‘ONE On TNT’ Events In April
ONE Championship recently unveiled all four main cards for the inaugural season of its “ONE on TNT” event series, and now, the lead cards for every show have been confirmed.
Former ONE Welterweight World Title challenger Tyler McGuire will headline the lead card for “ONE on TNT I,” which airs on Wednesday, 7 April.
The American, who is a U.S. Air Force Staff Sergeant with a 12-1 professional record, will face surging Russian finisher Raimond Magomedaliev in a pivotal mixed martial arts showdown that could decide the next challenger for ONE Welterweight World Champion Kiamrian “Brazen” Abbasov.
Fans will also be treated to a ONE Super Series heavyweight kickboxing encounter between Serbian highlight reel Rade Opacic and Patrick “Big Swiss” Schmid.
Their matchup was originally scheduled for ONE: UNBREAKABLE in January, but Schmid’s cornerman tested positive for COVID-19. Now, the team is all cleared, and this much-anticipated contest will finally happen.
Kicking off the event will be a heavyweight mixed martial arts clash between unbeaten viral sensation “Reug Reug” Oumar Kane and Amir Aliakbari’s longtime teammate, Mehdi Barghi.
Recent signee Dustin Joynson will headline the lead card for “ONE on TNT II,” which airs on Wednesday, 14 April.
The Canadian heavyweight destroyer will face fellow promotional debutant Islam Abasov, an undefeated Russian knockout artist who’s finished all of his opponents in the first round, including four within the opening minute.
A hard-hitting ONE Super Series Muay Thai bantamweight fight will also be on the bill, as the legendary Liam “Hitman” Harrison is scheduled to meet Pongsiri PK.Saenchai Muaythaigym in a contest that’s guaranteed to produce fireworks.
As always, ONE Super Series Muay Thai bouts feature athletes wearing 4-ounce mixed martial arts gloves, adding more excitement to every striking-only matchup.
Opening this show will be the highly anticipated mixed martial arts debut of 13-time Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu World Champion Marcus “Buchecha” Almeida.
The modern-day legend will compete in a heavyweight clash against undefeated South Korean phenom “Mighty Warrior” Kang Ji Won, who’s finished all of his opponents in the first round.
A pivotal battle between young top contenders in the flyweight mixed martial arts division will headline the lead card for “ONE on TNT III,” which airs on Wednesday, 21 April.
The main event will feature #4-ranked Yuya “Little Piranha” Wakamatsu squaring off against #5-ranked Reece “Lightning” McLaren. Both athletes have tremendous momentum behind them, and a victory would be crucial for their hopes of attaining a ONE Flyweight World Title opportunity.
Before that, fans will learn why the ONE Super Series featherweight kickboxing division is the most stacked group in combat sports, as the revered Chingiz Allazov makes his promotional debut opposite Enriko “The Hurricane” Kehl.
Leading off the show will be a bantamweight mixed martial arts contest between American rising star Troy “Pretty Boy” Worthen and #5-ranked Shuya “Stealth” Kamikubo.
Finally, the lead card for “ONE on TNT IV,” which airs on Wednesday, 28 April, features a lightweight matchup between a pair of previously ranked contenders who are looking to gain some redemption.
Hawaiian grappling sensation Lowen Tynanes suffered his first career loss at the hands of former featherweight king Marat “Cobra” Gafurov via split decision in December, and his upcoming opponent, Pieter “The Archangel” Buist, was handed his first loss in ONE by Timofey Nastyukhin in November.
A victory would be huge for either man, as the winner could return to the ONE Lightweight World Title picture, and a loss would see them plummet down the action-packed division.
Former ONE Flyweight Muay Thai World Champion Jonathan “The General” Haggerty is also scheduled to make his return. The British slugger, who’s currently the #2-ranked contender in the division, will look to build some momentum when he fights #4-ranked Elias “The Sniper” Mahmoudi.
Opening the event will be a women’s flyweight mixed martial arts contest between American talent Colbey Northcutt and Cambodian-American dynamo Sovannahry “The Sweet Savage” Em.
Stay tuned to ONEFC.com for more details about the “ONE on TNT” event series.
Read more: ONE On TNT: Video Conference Highlights
