Bibiano Fernandes last defended the One FC bantamweight championship in May, and he desperately wants to get back in action.
The Brazilian fighter, who holds a 4-0 record under the One FC banner, looks to get back in action in November, but has yet to get a call from the promotion about a date and an opponent.
“They said maybe November, but I have no idea when I’ll fight again,” Fernandes told MMAFighting.com. “I want to fight as soon as possible.”
Coming off three five-round fights, Fernandes doesn’t know who’s next. Undefeated prospect Dae Hwan Kim could be the next in line, but One FC hasn’t made it official yet.
“I don’t know who I’m fighting next, but there’s this guy, Dae Hwan Kim, who is really good. He has a good muay thai,” he said. “It could be him, but I don’t know yet. I’m waiting for their call, but I will keep training.”
Fernandes, also known as “The Flash,” earned this nickname due to sub-minute wins in MMA and jiu-jitsu, but hasn’t done the same recently. The Brazilian is unbeaten inside the One FC cage with all of his four wins coming by way of decision, and he wants to change it.
“I haven’t submitted anyone recently. I get to the positions, but I make mistakes,” he said. “I don’t know, but I think my flight is one of the issues. (One FC) just gives me three days at the hotel before the fight, so I take a 20-hour flight and don’t have enough time to recover my strength. Maybe that’s it. I don’t know. But I miss it.”
A former DREAM featherweight and bantamweight champion, Fernandes wants to stay active. He fought eight times in 22 months for DREAM between 2009-2011, including two one-night tournaments, but hasn’t done the same at One FC.
“There was a year when I fought four times for DREAM, and I just fought once this year,” he said. “My body misses it. I’ve been fighting for 23 years and my body is used to fighting. I want to fight. If they want me to fight in two weeks, I would take it. I’m in. I’m just waiting.”
Hungry for new challenges, the Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt is open to other types of competition.
“Metamoris is really nice, I think that’s the future (of grappling). I will fight MMA next, but if Metamoris wants me in, I’m in,” Fernandes said. “Gi, no gi, let’s go to war. I’m a professional athlete and I’m always training. If I have an opportunity to compete at Metamoris, I’d definitely do it.”