After coming up short in his bid to become a two-sport king in ONE Championship in late 2023, ONE Bantamweight MMA World Title Fabricio Andrade is set to return at ONE 170 in Bangkok, Thailand, on Friday, Jan. 24.
“Wonder Boy” will defend the stacked division’s throne against Kwon Won Il in a rematch of their 2022 encounter at ONE 158.
Following a second-round knockout loss against Jonathan Haggerty when they collided for the then-vacant ONE Bantamweight Kickboxing World Title at ONE Fight Night 16, Andrade decided to return home to focus on rehabbing old injuries.
Now, the Brazilian phenom feels fully healthy and ready to recapture the magic that led him to the apex of the MMA world.
“I had a few injuries during this period. Right after the fight against John Lineker, where I broke my hand, I spent some time in rehabilitation. Then, three weeks before my kickboxing fight, I was in a lot of pain in my shoulder. I couldn’t lift my arm. I had to take a lot of anti-inflammatories and other medications to be able to train, but it didn’t help much. So, right after the fight, I decided to take care of this injury,” he relayed to ONE.
“In the end, I didn’t need surgery. But I did need to focus a lot on physical therapy and muscle strengthening. This shoulder injury prevented me from returning to fighting before. I had to wait a while to be able to compete again. But now I’m 100 percent, and, thank God, I already have this fight scheduled. And I intend to be very active in 2025. I want to fight a lot and achieve many victories.”
The time off was not simply a rehabilitation of his physical self. “Wonder Boy” gave attention to every part of his body and mind.
Once mentally ready to get back in the gym, the seasoned striker dedicated himself to the art of jiu-jitsu to make sure he didn’t lose any ground against the challengers to his throne.
“I also evolved as a person, as a human being, and as an athlete. This evolution as a human being was very important for me, for me to better understand what I want to do and where I want to go,” Andrade mentioned.
“Regarding fighting, I focused a lot on grappling training. Since my last fight was a kickboxing fight, I spent a long time without training grappling. So, after I started training again, I started focusing a lot on jiu-jitsu and wrestling. But I always tried to improve my striking as well.”
When they last met two and a half years ago, Andrade finished Kwon via knockout in 62 seconds.
The swift victory earned him the chance to challenge for the bantamweight MMA gold and sent the South Korean down the ranks.
Kwon has clawed his way back into contention since then, with three straight TKO wins, but Andrade seems unimpressed with his upcoming rival.
“Kwon Won Il is a well-known guy, a guy I’ve faced before. Our fight was very quick. I managed to impose my strategy right at the beginning of the fight and managed to land a good kick that knocked him out,” the Brazilian remarked.
“He’s a guy who likes to talk a lot, who likes to provoke. That was something he did in our first fight and I’m expecting him to do it again. But I’m mentally prepared for it, and I think all this trash talk just shows that he’s not confident.”
“He knows I’m dangerous, that I can knock him out at any moment. So, I think he should be more respectful. But in the fight, I will show that I am better than him. I know how to beat him, and I will knock him out or submit him.”
Coming off a loss has only served as extra motivation for “Wonder Boy.” It has increased his desire to return to form in a major way.
He understands that remaining champion is much more difficult than climbing the ranks and is ready to utilize his full range of weaponry to defend his throne.
“I have a better fighting IQ. I can use my distance better, and I have a bigger arsenal than him. I can use elbows and kicks, and he’s a guy who’s more limited to boxing. I’m more complete in striking, and I’m sure I’m better than him on the ground. So, overall, I’m a better MMA athlete than him,” Andrade said.
When breaking the battle with Kwon down, the 27-year-old unsurprisingly predicted another finish.
However, as confident as he is about the outcome, he stopped short of calling how it would come about.
“I’m going to finish the fight, no matter what round. I’m going to look for the knockout all the time, and if I have the opportunity, I’m going to knock him out. But if I also have the opportunity to take him down and take this fight to the ground, I’m going to submit him. So, my prediction is that I’ll win by submission or knockout. This fight won’t go to the judges’ decision,” Andrade stated.
ONE 170 airs live on Friday, Jan. 24, at 6:30 a.m. EST/3:30 a.m. PST from Impact Arena in Bangkok, Thailand.