ONE Fight Night 23: Ok vs. Rasulov Preview and Predictions

Later this week, ONE Fight Night 23 goes down inside Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand. Friday’s event was supposed to feature an inaugural women’s strawweight kickboxing world title fight between Jackie Buntan and Anissa Meksen. Unfortunately, Buntan suffered a broken toe while training, leading to the intriguing matchup being postponed.

ONE Fight Night 23 will now be headlined by Ok Rae Yoon and promotional newcomer Alibeg Rasulov battling for the interim ONE lightweight MMA world title. The winner between Ok and Rasulov is expected to fight the division’s champion, Christian Lee, later this year.

Meanwhile, the Jul. 5 event features a bantamweight Muay Thai number-one contender bout in the co-headliner. Nico Carrillo, who holds a promotional record of 3-0 (all by knockout), looks to secure a title shot against Jonathan Haggerty. To do so, the Scottish contender must get through the always dangerous Saemapetch, who is coming off a first-round knockout win.

Also scheduled for ONE Fight Night 23 are Tye Ruotolo vs. Jozef Chen (catchweight submission grappling), Kang Ji Won vs. Kirill Grishenko (heavyweight MMA), Luke Lessei vs. Bampara Kouyate (featherweight Muay Thai), Hiroba Minowa vs Jeremy Miado (strawweight MMA), and more.

ONE Fight Night 23 airs live on Amazon Prime Video starting at 8 p.m. ET. Let’s take a look at the preview and predictions for the event.

Alibeg Rasulov makes his ONE debut in a five round main event against South Korean stalwart Rae Yoon Ok; can the debutant shine and pull off the upset?

Ok Rae Yoon has been unbeatable under the ONE Championship banner against anyone not named Christian Lee. The South Korean lightweight MMA contender now looks to secure a trilogy fight against Lee by emerging victorious at ONE Fight Night 23.

It’s difficult to predict how Alibeg Rasulov will perform in his ONE Championship debut. The 31-year-old Turkish lightweight holds a professional MMA record of 14-0 against solid opposition, but he hasn’t faced many fighters as skilled as his upcoming opponent.

Rasulov has the ability to take down and smash Ok to a TKO win. With that said, Ok has evolved into a well-rounded fighter, with the striking skills and experience to break down any opponent. ONE Friday Fight 23’s main event should be a back-and-forth battle, with Ok getting his hand raised by a close unanimous decision.

Tye Ruotolo welcomes Jozef Chen to the ONE cage for the latter’s first grappling match with the promotion; how does this one play out?

On Friday, Tye Ruotolo, the ONE welterweight submission grappling world champion, has an opportunity to extend his promotion record to 7-0. The 21-year-old’s latest challenge will be promotional newcomer Jozef Chen, who secured first place at the 2023 ADCC European Trials.

Representing B-Team, Chen plans to capitalize on Ruotolo’s star power in ONE Championship and make a massive statement. It’ll be easier said than done, as the ONE welterweight submission grappling king has looked phenomenal in his world title wins against Magomed Abdulkadirov and Izaak Michell.

Let’s be honest. Not many people will pick against Tye Ruotolo, Kade Ruotolo, and Mikey Musumeci in a ONE Championship submission grappling match. Things likely won’t change on Friday, as Ruotolo should defeat Chen inside the distance.

Nico Carillo knocked out Nong-O in his last fight; does he fare as well against Saemapetch Fairtex?

Nico Carrillo has looked like a legitimate threat to the ONE bantamweight Muay Thai throne through three promotional fights. Last time out, the Scottish contender put the division on notice by knocking out former champion Nong-O in round two of their ONE Friday Fights 46 matchup.

Carrillo has an opportunity to secure a bantamweight Muay Thai title shot against the winner of Jonathan Haggerty vs Superlek. ‘King of the North’ won’t be overlooking his upcoming opponent, number four-ranked Saemapetch, as the Thai fighter has the skills and experience to pull off a win later this week.

Nonetheless, Carrillo should win by knockout at ONE Fight Night 23. The 25-year-old is too big, too confident, and too powerful for most bantamweight Muay Thai contenders, making him the ideal title challenger for the winner of Haggerty vs. Superlek, which takes place on Sep. 6 at ONE 168 in Denver, Colorado.

Which fight is the sleeper match-up on this card?

The sleeper matchup for ONE Fight Night 23 is a featherweight Muay Thai matchup between Luke Lessei and Bampara Kouyate.

In Dec. 2023, Lessei made his ONE Championship debut against “Smokin'” Jo Nattawut. Although Nattawut won by unanimous decision, “The Chef” contributed significantly to make the matchup a Fight of the Year contender. Two months later, Lessei returned and defeated Eddie Abasolo to solidify his presence in the ONE featherweight Muay Thai division.

At ONE Fight Night 23, Lessei looks to continue building momentum against Kouyate, who holds a 0-1 promotional record. The Frenchman plans to silence the doubters and take out his American opponent, leading to an underrated action-packed matchup at Friday’s event.