ONE Championship is returning to the iconic Lumpinee Boxing Stadium with another card stacked full of exciting matchups this Friday, December 15.
Check out all the exciting matchups ahead of this week's Asia primetime event in Bangkok.
ONE Championship is returning to the iconic Lumpinee Boxing Stadium with another card stacked full of exciting matchups this Friday, December 15.
ONE Friday Fights 45 will host 10 high-octane Muay Thai battles and a pair of MMA openers live in Asia primetime in Bangkok, Thailand.
In the main event, 17-year-old Thai phenom Otop Or Kwanmuang will take on Turkey’s Soner “Golden Boy” Sen in a bantamweight Muay Thai clash between two strikers with knockout potential.
Both men have scored spectacular finishes in ONE Friday Fights already, but this is their chance to take a step forward and start moving toward the division’s upper tier.
Otop debuted with a TKO over Shingo Shibata in September but got stopped by Ilyas Musaev in his last outing in October, while Sen stunned Kongklai Annymuaythai with a first-round finish last month.
Consistency is key if they want to work toward a six-figure contract with the organization, so both men will be fired up to leave with the win and build some momentum.
Before that, Longern Paesaisi will face Stephen “El Matador” Irvine in an intriguing 127-pound catchweight Muay Thai bout.
Thai star Longern wants to keep pressing forward following his debut finish of Karim Dahou at ONE Friday Fights 39, but Irvine will pose a lot of difficult questions.
“El Matador” is an elusive fighter who can make his opponents miss before making them pay, although Longern has plenty of tools from the outside or inside that he can employ against the tough Scottish athlete.
Moreover, Irvine is eager to get back on track following his first blemish, which came after back-to-back stoppage wins.
There are plenty more fiery contests on the bill, with Yodthongthai Sor Sommai and Omar El Halabi’s 130-pound Muay Thai tussle just one of the potential standouts.
Yodthongthai is making his promotional debut as a three-time Rajadamnern Stadium Muay Thai World Champion, but that gives El Halabi a chance to make a name for himself in the world’s largest martial arts organization.
The Lebanese slugger dropped a decision in his debut, but if he can take out a decorated star like Yodthongthai, it would be the biggest win of his career and prove he belongs among the elite.
The night’s MMA bouts have a real international feel, with four unbeaten rising stars duking it out at the start of the card.
Azerbaijan’s Suleyman Suleymanov (9-0) will square off with Kyrgyzstan’s Nursultan Toktorov (6-0) at featherweight after Nepal’s Rabindra Dhant (6-0) meets Pakistan’s Ismail Khan (6-0) at flyweight.
Check out the full card below, and tune in live beginning at 7:30 a.m. ET / 7:30 p.m. ICT this Friday.