ONE Fight Night 7 is set for Bangkok this Friday night (US time). The card will take place at Lumpinee Stadium and will be headlined by a bantamweight title rematch between John Lineker and Fabricio Andrade.
All the action will take place inside a ring, not a cage. Last time out Andrade was dominating Lineker when he inadvertently kneed the Brazilian in the groin so hard that he could not continue.
Adrian Mattheis vs. Zelang Zhaxi (Strawweight)
Adrian Mattheis (10-6) is a veteran of 16 ONE Championship fights. The Indonesian has been on the roster since 2016 and is best known for knocking out former strawweight champion Alex Silva.
Zelang Zhaxi (16-7-1) was knocked out in the opening round by Danial Williams in his ONE Championship debut.
Linda Darrow vs. Victória Souza (Atomweight)
Linda Darrow (6-0) spent time training at the UFC Performance Institute and was clearly being scouted by the promotion. But she signed with ONE Championship instead and will be fighting for the first time since 2018.
Victoria Souza (6-1) was stopped by Victoria Lee in her ONE Championship debut. The Brazilian suffered a serious arm injury in that fight but is coming off a win on a small local show in her homeland.
Kickboxing: Andrei Stoica vs. Françesco Xhaja (Light Heavyweight)
Romanian star Andre Stoica is coming off a decision win over Giannis Stoforidis but has been out of action for almost a year. He is best known for a spectacular KO win over Anderson Silva in 2019.
Francesco Xhaja is coming of a stoppage loss to Rade Opacic. This has fight of the night potential with both men happy to stay in the pocked and trade punches.
Kickboxing: Saemapetch Fairtex vs. Zhang Chenglong (Bantamweight)
Saemapetch Fairtex will fight under kickboxing rules for the first time since signing for ONE Championship although he is no stranger to the sport having fought in China. He comes into the match on the back of a stunning KO win over Rittewada Petchyindee which snapped a run of two straight stoppage losses.
Zhang Chenglong has lost five ONE Championship fights in a row. But he has been facing the very best fighters on the roster and has been the distance every time, with two of the losses coming by split decision so isn’t quite as bad as his recent record suggests.
Eko Roni Saputra vs. Danny Kingad (Flyweight)
Eko Roni Saputra (7-1) comes into this contest on a seven fight winning streak but none of those victories have come at the expense of ranked opponents. This clearly represents a step up for the Indonesian wrestler.
Danny Kingad (14-3) will know he has the edge over his opponent in a striking match. The Filipino will need to stuff his opponent’s takedowns and use his footwork to get in and out and do damage on the feet.
Submission grappling: Danielle Kelly vs. Ayaka Miura (Catchweight)
Danielle Kelly is a decorated BJJ black belt. She will attack relentlessly with submissions and is a massive favourite against an opponent who is known for MMA, not submission grappling.
Ayaka Miura is very dangerous with locks and has numerous finishes by way of americana. But the judoka looks to be outmatched here, even if she does have a slight size advantage to compensate.
Martin Nguyen vs. Shamil Gasanov (Featherweight)
Shamil Gasanov was originally scheduled to face Nguyen but withdrew just 10 days before the fight. Replacement Razhab Shaydullaev (6-0) has stopped every opponent he has ever faced.
Martin Nguyen (19-6) has accounted for some of ONE Championship’s biggest names with his overhand right. But the strategy has become less effective over the years and with three losses in his last four fights he clearly needs to find different ways to win.
Muay Thai: Tawanchai PKSaenchaigym (c) vs. Jamal Yusupov (for featherweight title)
Tawanchai PKSaenchaigym will be making the first defense of his featherweight Muay Thai title. He is a southpaw and is very dangerous with his left straight and left high kicks.
Jamal Yusupov’s main claim to fame is knocking out Yodsaenklai Fairtex. The Russian southpaw is coming off a win over Jo Nattawut bit the aforementioned fighters are past their prime whereas Tawanchai is at the peak of his powers.
John Lineker vs. Fabricio Andrade (For bantamweight title)
John Lineker well and truly earned the nickname “hands of stone.” He likes to sit down on his shots and puts real power into his punches but could not cope with Fabricio Andrade’s speed and accuracy last time out.
Fabricio Andrade would be the champion if he hadn’t landed that ill-advised low blow when Lineker was badly hurt. His straight knees are devastating and if this plays out anything like the first fight he should win inside the distance.
The entire ONE Fight Night 7 fight card will be available to view free in North America on Amazon Prime for subscribers, and in other territories using the newly launched app which you can download here.