ONE Fight Night 11: Eersel vs. Menshikov Preview and Predictions

On Friday, Jun. 9, ONE Championship will showcase the eleventh event in their partnership with Amazon Prime Video. The combat sports promotion is traveling to the legendary Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand, for a 10-bout fight card featuring matchups in MMA, kickboxing, Muay Thai, and submission grappling.

ONE Fight Night 11: Eersel vs. Menshikov on Prime Video will showcase two world championship bouts. In the main event, Regian Eersel looks to extend his 9-0 promotional run as the lightweight Muay and kickboxing world champion. On Friday night, Eersel puts his Muay Thai world title up for grabs against Dmitry Menshikov, a hard-hitting promotional newcomer.

The co-main event will showcase two of the biggest superstars in ONE’s expansion into submission grappling. Kade Ruotolo, 20, intends to extend his promotional record to 4-0 by securing his second lightweight title defense. The young phenom has been matched up against, arguably, his most formidable opponent yet, Tommy Langaker, who holds a 2-0 record in ONE.

ONE’s latest Prime Video event has several other intriguing matchups, including the return of Superbon Singha Mawynn after losing the featherweight kickboxing world championship. The Thai superstar plans to get back on track by taking out fifth-ranked Tayfun Ozcan.

The event airs live and free to Amazon Prime subscribers on Amazon Prime Video at 8 p.m. ET. Let’s take a look at the preview and predictions.

Regian Eersel hasn’t lost a fight since 2016; does he keep his hot streak alive and defend his belt against Dmitry Menshikov?

Regian Eersel is undoubtedly one of the best strikers on the ONE Championship roster. After winning seven consecutive kickboxing fights, Eersel transitioned to the lightweight Muay Thai division. ‘The Immortal’ won back-to-back championship bouts against Sinsamut Klinmee, leading to his upcoming matchup against Dmitry Menshikov.

Menshikov is a former GLORY kickboxer with a lifetime record of 27-2 and 19 knockouts. The Russian is a dangerous knockout artist, but he needs to avoid the world-class distance management of Eersel. Despite his finishing ability, the 25-year-old title challenger will likely struggle to knock out the reigning lightweight Muay Thai champion.

Eersel can control the distance with his jab and various devastating kicks. The Suriname-born fighter should be able to break down Menshikov and secure a finish in the fourth or fifth round.

Kade Ruotolo puts his lightweight submission grappling title on the line against Tommy Langaker; does the 20-year-old phenom get the job done?

Kade Ruotolo has looked unbeatable in his first three submission grappling matches in ONE Championship. With that said, Tommy Langaker has the skills to be Ruotolo’s toughest test yet. The reigning lightweight submission grappling world champion has utilized his aggressiveness and creativity to dominate thus far.

Meanwhile, Langaker’s experience and back takes could counter the 20-year-old’s world-class skillset. The ONE Fight Night 11 co-main event has a strong possibility of going the distance, leading to the number of submission attempts deciding the winner. In that scenario, Ruotolo’s consistent attack should lead to a unanimous decision win.

Superbon is coming into this fight on the heels of a knockout loss; how does the former champion respond as he takes on Tayfun Ozcan?

Superbon established arguably the best three-fight run in ONE Championship history by defeating Sitthichai Sitsongpeenong, Giorgio Petrosyan, and Marat Grigorian. On Jan. 13, the Thai superstar had his momentum halted when Chingiz Allazov knocked him out in the second round. He hopes to bounce back against Tayfun Ozcan at ONE Fight Night 11.

Ozcan’s promotional record of 1-2 is quite misleading. ‘Turbine’ is an explosive and powerful striker with the potential to surprise fans on Jun. 9. With that said, the 31-year-old has lost fights against Grigorian and Sitthichai, who have lost against Superbon.

Superbon’s somewhat quick turnaround could be a factor against Ozcan. Although Thai fighters are built differently, the former world champion suffered a brutal knockout only five months ago. It’ll be intriguing to see if ‘Turbine’ can capitalize on the situation, but Superbon should be able to get back on track with a unanimous decision win.

Which fight is the sleeper matchup on this card?

The sleeper matchup is a heavyweight kickboxing bout between Rade Opacic and Guto Inocente. The hard-hitting kickboxers fought in Jun. 2022, with Inocente securing a first-round, body-shot finish. After parting ways for one fight, they will meet again at ONE Fight Night 11.

In the first fight between Opacic and Inocente, both fighters started slow, showing respect for their opponent’s power. They have a combined 100-percent finish rate in ONE, including knockouts in their losses. As a result, the heavyweight rematch could end at any moment, giving the fans an intriguing kickboxing bout to watch on Jun. 9.