Shamil Erdogan has never lost a professional MMA fight. Paul Elliott has never needed the judges to secure a win. On Friday, Oct. 2, one of those heavyweights will take another step toward championship contention.
ONE Fight Night 48: Erdogan vs. Elliott takes place at Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand, with nine bouts across MMA, Muay Thai, kickboxing, and submission grappling. The main event could help determine who gets a shot at the vacant ONE heavyweight MMA title.
Erdogan enters at 13-0 with a wrestling pedigree and the striking to complement it. The Russian-born Turkish fighter once beat former three-division ONE champion Anatoly Malykhin in freestyle wrestling, but his victories in ONE, including over Aung La N Sang, have shown how dangerous he can be on his feet.
That versatility gives the 36-year-old options against Elliott, whose knockout power makes every exchange a risk.
After injuries hampered his early ONE appearances, Elliott found his footing with consecutive knockouts of Ryugo Takeuchi and Regan Upshaw. His June finish of Upshaw at ONE Fight Night 44 took just six seconds. All eight of his professional wins have come by knockout.
Erdogan’s wrestling could limit Elliott’s chances to unload. Elliott, meanwhile, needs to keep the fight where he can put his power to work. A victory over the unbeaten Turk would be his strongest argument yet for a title opportunity.
In featherweight Muay Thai, Luke “The Chef” Lessei faces Charlie Guest, with both looking to build on recent wins and push into the division’s top five.
Lessei has faced difficult opposition since his December 2023 ONE debut, including Jo Nattawut and current featherweight Muay Thai champion Nico Carrillo. The American returned to the win column in July with a unanimous decision over Mohamed Younes Rabah.
Guest made an immediate impression in his promotional debut, stopping Sam Fitzgerald in the second round at ONE Fight Night 44 in June. Now, the British striker gets a chance to prove he can repeat that success against an established ONE competitor.
Lessei’s varied offense should serve him well if he can control the distance. Guest’s pressure and punching power could make that difficult. For Lessei, a win would help build toward another meeting with Carrillo. For Guest, it would accelerate his climb through the division.
Elsewhere, undefeated Joshua Perreira meets Antonio Cesar in flyweight MMA. Perreira is 6-0 with six finishes, while Cesar enters at 14-2 after a unanimous decision over Lito Adiwang in his ONE debut. Cesar took that July assignment after an injury forced Perreira out. Now, the two face each other.
Elbrus Osmanov returns to kickboxing against Yi Yuxuan following a successful stretch in Muay Thai. Nakrob Fairtex faces Parham Gheirati in bantamweight Muay Thai, and Lee Seung Cheol takes on Karen Ghazaryan in strawweight MMA.
Rounding out the card are Shoya Ishiguro vs. Ruan Alvarenga in featherweight submission grappling, Yu Yau Pui vs. Marie McManamon in women’s atomweight Muay Thai, and Arian Esparza vs. Fitzgerald in featherweight Muay Thai.
ONE Fight Night 48 airs live on Prime Video in the United States and Canada on Friday, Oct. 2, at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT, with access included for Amazon Prime members. The event takes place Saturday morning, Oct. 3, in Bangkok.
ONE Fight Night 48 Fight Card
Featherweight Muay Thai: Arian Esparza vs. Sam Fitzgerald
Heavyweight MMA: Shamil Erdogan vs. Paul Elliott
Bantamweight Muay Thai: Nakrob Fairtex vs. Parham Gheirati
Flyweight MMA: Joshua Perreira vs. Antonio Cesar
Featherweight Muay Thai: Luke Lessei vs. Charlie Guest
Bantamweight Kickboxing: Yi Yuxuan vs. Elbrus Osmanov
Strawweight MMA: Lee Seung Cheol vs. Karen Ghazaryan
Featherweight Submission Grappling: Shoya Ishiguro vs. Ruan Alvarenga
Women’s Atomweight Muay Thai: Yu Yau Pui vs. Marie McManamon