NextGen III and Winter Warriors: how the ONE Championship is looking to close out 2021
The end of the calendar year is jam-packed with fighting action, with the ONE Championship: Winter Warriors event coming up in just a few days to lead into an incredible December. Here’s what you need to know about the main card and the most important storylines of the showdown in Singapore.
What is the ONE Championship?
Seen as “[the] largest sports media property in Asia’s history” and “Asia’s largest martial arts organization”, the ONE Championship is a Singapore-based fighting promotion established in 2010. This event marks the eleventh year of their existence, with Winter Warriors serving as the nineteenth and last event of the year for the franchise.
Taking place on December 3 in the Singapore Indoor Stadium, it’s one of the most notable MMA events of the season and a massive deal for sports betting enthusiasts around the world.
These are the upcoming ONE Championship fighting events
On November 26, the ONE Championship: NextGen III event will air, which was recorded at the same time as the previous two outings, October 29. Winter Warriors, meanwhile, will be broadcast live.
NextGen III
This event mainly focuses on up-and-coming stars, with a notable fight scheduled between veteran fighter Lito Adiwang and new talent Jarred Brooks serving as one of the main attractions. This means that the tournament is a great one to check out if you are only just getting involved with the fighting scene.
Alaverdi Ramazanov’s bout is also worth a mention because he’s returning to Muay Thai fighting as a former kickboxing world champion in the same weight category against a two-times world champion. NextGen III’s main card features the following matchups:
ONE Championship NextGen III main card matches
Strawweight (57 kg)
Lito Adiwang (Philippines) versus Jarred Brooks (USA)
Alex Silva (Brazil) vs Rene Catalan (Philippines)
Flyweight (61 kg)
Kickboxing: Panpayak Jitmuangnon (Thailand) versus Daniel Puertas (Spain)
Bantamweight (66 kg)
Muay Thai: Alaverdi Ramazanov (Russia) versus Pongsiri P.K.Saenchaimuaythaigym (Thailand)
Kickboxing: Felipe Lobo (Brazil) versus Rodlek P.K. Saenchaimuaythaigym (Thailand)
Lightweight (77 kg)
Pieter Buist (Netherlands) versus Ruslan Emilbek Uulu (Kyrgyzstan)
The video-on-demand event will be available in over 150 countries of the world alongside the ONE Championship’s official YouTube channel. With lots of exciting fights scheduled for this one, it’s a great event to check out if you’re a newcomer to the world of mixed martial arts.
Winter Warriors
This extravagant year-ending affair is the exciting conclusion of ONE’s slate of events for the year. The main event will feature Regian Eersel’s title defense against Islam Murtazaev of Russia, a fight with massive KO potential based on the fighting styles of the two combatants.
The main card also showcases the end of the Atomweight World Grand Prix Championship, with the finals contested between Stamp Fairtex and Ritu Phogat. Only one of these ladies can take the title at the end of the day. This is one of the most notable fights of the year and it’s definitely the one to watch here.
Ritu’s first professional defeat came in the same circuit in May this year by split decision against Bi Nguyen, and yet she’s back to fight for the title having conducted herself in spectacular fashion throughout the rest of 2021.
ONE Championship Winter Warriors main card matches
Atomweight (women, 52 kg)
Championship match: Stamp Fairtex (Thailand) versus Ritu Phogat (India)
Flyweight (61 kg)
Hu Yong (China) versus Yuya Wakamatsu (Japan)
Bantamweight (66 kg)
Kickboxing: Qiu Jianliang (China) versus Hiroki Akimoto (Japan)
Lightweight (77 kg)
Championship match: Regian Eersel (Suriname, defending champion) versus Islam Murtazaev (Russia)
Timofey Nastyukhin (Russia) versus Saygid Guseyn Arslanaliev (Turkey)
Heavyweight (120 kg)
Kang Ji Won (South Korea) versus Marcus Almeida (Brazil)
Conclusion
With just a couple of days to go until the event, the ONE Championship: NextGen III listings serve as a great way to get to grips with the basics of MMA to prepare yourself in preparation for the big season-ending event. The exciting encounters and the up-and-coming talent on showcase makes this a must-see tournament.
Meanwhile, Winter Warriors in early December offers great opportunities for fighting fans should they look at getting into the world of betting, with the main card featuring two championship fights alongside a heavyweight bout for your entertainment. Its follow-up, aptly named Winter Warriors II, will be held on December 17. They are all well worth checking out for those interested in combat sport events and competitive fighting disciplines!
