ONE: Fists of Fury II Interviews (Aliakbari, Machado, and more)
The ONE Championship athletes competing at ONE: Fists of Fury II this Friday, March 5th took part in a Q&A session ahead of their respective contests.
Full interviews with all of these combatants can be found at the link included.
Rizin/ ACA veteran and ONE debutant Amir Aliakbari takes on adept KO artist Kang Ji Won in the top of the marquee attraction for ONE: Fists of Fury II.
Aliakbari talked about his training methodology for this contest and outlines his quest to become ONE Heavyweight World Champion. The undefeated Kang touched on his last performance against Mehdi Barghi as well as the improvements in his grappling for this Aliakbari collision.
Another ONE Championship heavyweight debutant is Anatoly Malykhin who tests skills with veteran Alexandre Machado in the co-main event feature.
Malykhin shared his thoughts on his first foray into the ONE Championship Circle and the skills that he is looking to showcase. Machado touched on how much he’s improved since his time away from ONE competition and his aspirations to capture a belt in ONE Championship.
In a ballyhooed bantamweight battle, Emilio Urrutia faces hard-hitting Mark Fairtex Abelardo in what looks to be a high octane affair, on paper.
Urrutia talked about his return to the weight category and galvanizing his efforts on all levels. Abelardo broke down what he has learned from recent roadblocks and wanting to entertain the ONE viewers in this outing.
Also, Shooto Pan Pacific Champion Ryogo Takahashi locks horns with Tang Kai in a featherweight prizefight.
Takahashi discussed the excitement of finally fighting Tang Kai and the lessons he learned from his defeat to Thanh Le. Tang Kai fielded questions regarding a possible Garry Tonon bout and his entry into the top five at featherweight.
Complete Card for ONE: Fists of Fury II
Amir Aliakbari vs. Kang Ji Won (Mixed Martial Arts – Heavyweight)
Alexandre Machado vs. Anatoly Malykhin (MMA – Heavyweight)
Ryogo Takahashi vs. Tang Kai (Mixed Martial Arts – Featherweight)
Yoshiki Nakahara vs. Ruslan Emilbek Uulu (Mixed Martial Arts – Featherweight)
Han Zi Hao vs. Adam Noi (Muay Thai – Bantamweight)
Mark Fairtex Abelardo vs. Emilio Urrutia (Mixed Martial Arts – Bantamweight)