Former Strikeforce light heavyweight champion Renato “Babalu” Sobral is booked to fight DREAM light heavyweight grand prix finalist Tatsuya Mizuno at the main event of ONE FC 4: Destiny of the Warriors, promotion officials announced over the weekend.
Additionally, ONE FC veterans Masakazu Imanari and Leandro Issa will meet in a bantamweight tilt in the night’s co-main event, slated for June 23 at the Stadium Negara in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
Sobral (36-9) returns to action for the first time since suffering a first-round knockout at the legendary hands of Dan Henderson in late 2010. Prior to the setback, the 36-year-old Brazilian rattled off six wins in seven contests, including resounding finishes over Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou, Bobby Southworth and David Heath.
“Babalu” initially signed with ONE Fighting Championship in December and was slotted opposite Melvin Manhoef for ONE FC 3 on March 31. However the bout was ultimately scrapped due to scheduling conflicts.
His opponent, Mizuno (11-7), strides into the headlining match riding a two-fight win streak after earning quick finishes of Ilima Maiava and Trevor Prangley. A 30-year-old decorated Judoka fighting out of Japan, Mizuno has competed against an impressive hit-list of MMA names, including Thiago Silva, Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipovic, Melvin Manhoef, Gegard Mousasi and Sergei Kharitonov.
Meanwhile, feared leglock specialist Imanari (25-10-2) looks to capitalize on momentum gained from his last performance, when the 36-year-old needed just 68 seconds to catch Kevin Belingon in a nasty inverted heel hook at ONE FC 3. The victory was Imanari’s tenth via leglock, and sixteenth submission finish overall.
He’ll face Issa (9-2), a 28-year-old grappling specialist sporting a six-fight win streak, five of which ended via first-round submission.