ONE Championship‘s will close out their 2021 schedule with ONE Championship: Winter Warriors II, a previously recorded event featuring nine incredible matches, airing from the Singapore Indoor Stadium on Friday, Dec. 17. A three-bout lead card will set the stage for a stacked six-bout main card that’ll usher in the new year with wild action inside the famed Circle.
With intriguing storylines and showdowns throughout, there are many reasons to tune in to the final event of the year. But here are the three that make this event simply unmissable:
Four of the six main card bouts – including the co-main and main events – will feature athletes from the Filipino gym, Team Lakay.
Jhanlo Mark Sangiao, the 19-year-old son of Team Lakay head coach Mark Sangiao, makes his ONE debut in a contest to open the main card. The undefeated Filipino will meet Paul Lumihi, a man 14 years his senior with four times his experience. The young upstart has a bit of pressure on him, being the heir to the Team Lakay throne, and only time will tell if he can continue his unbeaten run.
Another young gun from Team Lakay will make his debut directly after Sangiao. Stephan Loman meets third-ranked bantamweight competitor Yusup Saadlaev inside the Circle, and he hopes to put the division on notice with an emphatic performance.
Former world champion Kevin Belingon meets Kwon Won Il, a fast-rising South Korean, in the co-main event. Kwon wants to take his spot in the official ONE athlete rankings and usher Belingon out of relevancy. But the Team Lakay veteran intends to prove he has one more run at the top left in the tank.
In the main event of the evening, former ONE flyweight world champion and fourth-ranked contender Kairat Akhmetov and second-ranked Danny Kingad finally meet inside the Circle. After years of waiting, this match will finally happen, and the winner will surely be put in line for a shot at flyweight gold in 2022.
Team Lakay will firmly be under the spotlight inside the Singapore Indoor Stadium, and they get a shot to show the world why they are truly elite.
In five of the six main-card bouts, there are significant title implications at hand. Saadulaev believes a win over Loman will make him the next-in-line for the winner of Bibiano Fernandes and John Lineker.
Welterweights Zebaztian Kadestam and Murad Ramazanov could perhaps be competing in a title eliminator to see who gets a crack at reigning welterweight king Kiamrian Abbasov. On top of this, Fan Rong and Vitaly Bigdash, who are competing in a catchweight battle, are trying to make waves for middleweight contention. Those all come before the two main events that carry heavy consequences for the participants.
There may not be a title on the line at ONE: Winter Warriors II, but the results will undoubtedly impact how 2022 looks. This card is filled to the brim with title contenders, former champions, and hopefuls. Don’t miss this event if you want to see who is next in line.
The ONE: Winter Warriors II lead card is not to be skipped. It features three outstanding matchups that will be sure to not only excite in its action, but also deliver meaningful results in each division.
In ONE Super Series action, Joseph Lasiri meets debutant Asahi Shinagawa. Lasiri, the third-ranked contender, is looking for a top-notch victory to emphasize his claim to a title shot. Meanwhile, Shinagawa can make an impactful debut and jump right into the official ONE athlete rankings.
Former ONE Lightweight kickboxing title challenger Mustapha Haida welcomes Arian Sadikovic to the Circle. The two will cap off the lead card with both men feeling the pressure of trying to make a statement following Regian Eersel’s title defense at ONE: Winter Warriors.
In the final lead card bout, Li Kai Wen and Fabricio Andrade collide in an exceptional bantamweight mixed martial arts showcase of two of the fastest rising stars in the division. A win for either man may put them into contention for a place in the divisional rankings in the new year.
ONE: Winter Warriors II will air on YouTube at 7:30 a.m. EST/4:30 a.m. PST on Friday, Dec. 17.