The ONE fighters who caused Lito Adiwang to fall out of the ONE Official Rankings are clashing on January 28, 2022 for a possible shot at reigning strawweight champion Joshua Pacio or Top contender Bokang Masunyane.
This was confirmed as ONE Championship announced on December 31, 2021 the full card for ONE: ONLY THE BRAVE which broadcasts live across the world on Friday, January 28.
Third ranked Jarred Brooks will go up against fourth ranked Hiroba Minowa in the lead card.
Minowa was responsible for snapping Adiwang’s seven-game streak by a series of takedown moves during ONE: Inside the Matrix III, broadcasted on November 13, 2020.
Minowa took down Adiwang in all three rounds and took home a close split-decision victory that was probably decided on a last minute flurry from the Japanese.
The fight was still up for grabs late in the third but Minowa again took Adiwang for a ride to the mat. He maintained control while dishing the ground and pound until both men exchanged hits to end the round with Adiwang firing lying on the mat.
The loss pulled the “Thunder Kid” out of rankings since its inception. Adiwang had been clinging the 5th top contender status until this loss.
When he reclaimed the spot by a dominant win over “Wolf Of The Grasslands” Hexigetu at ONE: REVOLUTION last September 24, 2021, Brooks made sure his stay would be a short one as “The Monkey God” proved their bout built around intense trashtalk was as good as advertised, his being a better grappler would overcome Adiwang’s being a better striker.
Brooks withstood Adiwang toe-to-toe until his superb grappling and ground and pound led him to an arm triangle choke submission victory.
The end came with 3:07 left in the second round of their ONE: Next Gen III main event bout that aired November 26, 2021.
The loss pushed Adiwang out of the rankings, barely just over a month since reclaiming the spot.
Undefeated heavyweights Anatoly Malykhin and Kirill Grishenko do battle for the ONE Interim Heavyweight World Championship in the main event.
#1-ranked featherweight contender Kim Jae Woong squares off with #4-ranked Tang Kai in the co-main event. Also on the card is a pair of semifinal bouts in the prestigious ONE Featherweight Kickboxing World Grand Prix as #1-ranked Marat Grigorian takes on #4-ranked Chingiz Allazov, while #3-ranked Sitthichai faces Davit Kiria.
Full schedule
MAIN CARD
ONE Interim Heavyweight World Championship
Anatoly Malykhin vs. Kirill Grishenko
Heavyweight: 102.2 KG – 120.2 KG
Mixed Martial Arts
(1) Kim Jae Woong vs. (4) Tang Kai
Featherweight: 65.9 KG – 70.3 KG
ONE Featherweight Kickboxing World Grand Prix – Semifinal
(1) Marat Grigorian vs. (4) Chingiz Allazov
Featherweight: 65.9 KG – 70.3 KG
ONE Featherweight Kickboxing World Grand Prix – Semifinal
(3) Sitthichai vs. Davit Kiria
Featherweight: 65.9 KG – 70.3 KG
Mixed Martial Arts
Ruslan Emilbek Uulu vs. Zhang Lipeng
Lightweight: 70.4 KG – 77.1 KG
Kickboxing
Rade Opacic vs. Francesko Xhaja
Heavyweight: 102.2 KG – 120.2 KG
LEAD CARD
Mixed Martial Arts
(4) Hiroba Minowa vs. (3) Jarred Brooks
Strawweight: 52.3 KG – 56.7 KG
ONE Featherweight Kickboxing World Grand Prix – Alternate
Smokin’ Jo Nattawut vs. Dovydas Rimkus
Featherweight: 65.9 KG – 70.3 KG
Mixed Martial Arts
Tatsumitsu Wada vs. Wang Shuo
Flyweight: 56.8 KG – 61.2 KG
Mixed Martial Arts
Hiroyuki Tetsuka vs. Zebaztian Kadestam
Welterweight: 77.2 KG – 83.9 KG
Mixed Martial Arts
Anderson ‘Braddock’ Silva vs. Paul Elliott
Light Heavyweight: 93.1 KG – 102.1 KG
Muay Thai
Diandra Martin vs. Smilla Sundell
Catchweight: 58.0 KG
By: Armando M. Bolislis
