On Monday, ONE Championship revealed the first three bouts for ONE 166: Qatar on Friday, Mar. 1.
The promotion promised multiple world title tilts for the event, and the first one will take place in the strawweight MMA division.
ONE strawweight MMA champion Jarred Brooks will make the first defense of the coveted gold against the man he took it from, Joshua Pacio. After dropping the belt at ONE 164, the Filipino showed he’s ready for a rematch by dominating Mansur Malachiev in October.
After running roughshod through the division, Brooks waited patiently for his return to MMA. The American star hasn’t been out of action, however. He moved up a division and over to submission grappling to challenge flyweight king of the sport Mikey Musumeci and held his own until finally succumbing to the BJJ master.
Both men will be ready to put on a show and find a finish in emphatic fashion when they rematch in the Middle East.
Finishes are part of the game for Amir Aliakbari. After a difficult start to his ONE career, the Iranian rebounded with three consecutive TKO finishes in the promotion. Now on the brink of a title shot, Aliakbari will meet former heavyweight king Arjan Bhullar on the loaded lineup in Qatar.
The high-stakes meeting will mark “Singh’s” return to action after losing the gold to Anatoly Malykhin. The Canadian-Indian wrestler will try to impose his will and make sure he gets another shot at the 26 pounds of gold with a win over Aliakbari.
The third bout announced for the card will feature flyweight submission grappling stars Osamah Almarwai and Cleber Sousa. Both men suffered defeat at the hands of divisional king Musumeci, so they’ll be hoping to put their world-class submission skills on display to earn a rematch with “Darth Rigatoni” when they meet.
ONE 166: Qatar will emanate from Lusail Sports Arena on Friday, Mar. 1, with a stacked lineup. More matches and news will follow in the weeks to come.