ONE Championship is putting the city of Atlanta on notice. The organization revealed two extraordinary title tilts for its Georgia debut on Friday, Nov. 8, via a press release on Wednesday.
At the top of the ONE 169: Atlanta card will be a heavyweight collision for the divisional gold as ONE heavyweight MMA champion Anatoly Malykhin is set to defend his crown against “Reug Reug” Oumar Kane.
Malykhin has been a beast since arriving in ONE in 2021. The Russian brawler is a three-division champion, holding the middleweight, light heavyweight, and heavyweight titles, and he remains undefeated in his professional career. But the immovable object will meet an irresistible force when the ONE 169 main event goes down.
“Reug Reug” earned his title shot with a shock decision win over Marcus “Buchecha” Almeida at ONE Fight Night 13 last August. He proved his wrestling skills could stand with the best of them when he defeated the BJJ legend. Now, he’ll have a chance to show the world he has what it takes to hold gold.
Also announced is the outstanding trilogy for the ONE featherweight Muay Thai title between reigning king Tawanchai PK Saenchai and ONE veteran “Smokin” Jo Nattawut.
The two met for a second time at ONE 167 earlier this month, with Tawanchai picking up another narrow decision win over his Thai compatriot. But across both bouts, many fans believed Nattawut won, so a third meeting was guaranteed.
Nattawut will have a chance to prove them right when he competes in front of his friends in his adopted hometown of Atlanta for the first time on the global stage, and he can snatch the ultimate prize with a win.
More bouts are expected to be announced in the coming weeks and months, but ONE 169: Atlanta is off to a hot start with these two clashes.
Tickets will go on sale on Friday, Jul. 5, at 10 a.m. ET/7 a.m. PT. Fans can register for the pre-sale here. Tickets go on sale to the general public on Friday, Jul. 12, at 10 a.m. ET/7 a.m. PT on Ticketmaster.
Stage Front VIP will provide fans with exclusive VIP experiences. Fans can sign up for more information on VIP packages at stagefrontvip.com/one.