January is shaping up to be an excellent start for ONE Championship in 2020.
The organization already announced its first event of the new year, ONE: A NEW TOMORROW, which will take place in Bangkok, Thailand on 10 January.
Now, the promotion has released the card for their second event, which happens on 31 January.
ONE: FIRE & FURY will go down at the Mall Of Asia Arena in Manila, Philippines, and its headline attraction features ONE Strawweight World Champion Joshua “The Passion” Pacio, who defends his gold against surging challenger Alex “Little Rock” Silva.
Pacio reached peak form in April and reclaimed the gold after he knocked out Yosuke “The Ninja” Saruta in an epic rematch for the World Title he surrendered just three months prior.
“The Passion” extended his run in November with a successful World Title defense after submitting compatriot Rene “The Challenger” Catalan via arm-triangle choke in the second round.
The Baguio City native continues to demonstrate why he deserves the mantle of the best strawweight in the world. But if there is one athlete worthy enough to challenge his status as the division’s leading man, it would be Silva.
The Brazilian is a former ONE Strawweight World Champion who has seen his stock rise on the back of several sensational performances in the second half of 2019.
In August, Silva became the first person to finish – and submit – Stefer “The Lion” Rahardian.
Then, the Evolve representative defeated Chinese sensation Peng Xue Wen with a brilliant rolling armbar in the second round of their November showdown to earn his shot at Pacio’s gold.
Another Filipino athlete will make his return to the Circle on the very same night.
Former ONE Lightweight World Champion Eduard “Landslide” Folayang closed out 2019 with a second-round technical decision victory over Amarsanaa “Spear” Tsogookhuu in November.
But Ahmed “Wolverine” Mutjaba is ready to spoil Folayang’s homecoming. The Pakistani is looking to make a name for himself in the division and there is no better way to accomplish that than to take out a star like “Landslide.”
The rest of the stacked card features World Champions, international superstars, and national heroes. More details can be found here.
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