Click it and Unblock the Notifications
Sporting Buzz
-
T20 World Cup 2024: 'Yuzvendra Chahal's experience key, Hardik Pandya can only come in as all-rounder" - Former India Star Venkatapathy Raju -
Deepak Punia, Sujeet Kalkal's Dubai Airport Ordeal Threatens Olympic Qualification Bid -
IPL 2024: 'Nothing To Do With Mental Health' - Glenn Maxwell Clarifies His Absence From RCB Playing 11 -
MLC 2024: Glenn Maxwell Set To Link Up With Australian Teammates Travis Head & Steve Smith At Washington Freedom -
IPL 2024 Fact Check: Virat Kohli involved in a verbal spat with Mayank Agarwal after RCB vs SRH Match -
Most Sixes in IPL 2024: Top 10 Players And Teams To Hit Most Sixes As Of April 16 -
Murali Sreeshankar Pulls Out Of Paris 2024: Indian Long Jumper's Olympic Dream Comes Crashing Due To Injury -
T20 World Cup 2024: Shubman Gill or Yashasvi Jaiswal? Eoin Morgan and Zaheer Khan make their choice -
IPL 2024 Memes: Fans Troll RCB on X after 'Work in Progress' Post -
T20 World Cup: Do Bangladesh Really Need Mushtaq Ahmed As Spin Coach? The Hiring Raises Eyebrows
Bengaluru, March 6: John Lineker got his moniker because of his devastating knockout power. However, ONE Bantamweight World Champion Bibiano Fernandes is treating his rival lightly.
"I don't think he has a dangerous striking. He has only good punches. I saw a lot of his fights, I studied his game with my coaches, and we saw that he has some really good hooks," the Brazilian titleholder "The Flash" said ahead of their showdown at ONE: Lights Out next Friday (March 11).
"But I'm not worried about his striking or his skills. I'm very focused, and I know I'm going to go through Lineker. I know I will win this fight."
The world champion and the #1-ranked contender had their fight initially scheduled for ONE: Bad Blood. However, "Hands of Stone" Lineker had to withdraw at the last minute due to medical protocols, and Fernandes used the extra time wisely.
"No, [the delay wasn't difficult]. I'm a professional athlete. I've been doing this since I was 14. Some things are out of my control, but I am a warrior. I am prepared mentally and physically for whatever comes and goes," the world champion since 2013 revealed.
"I went back to my camp, and I'm training hard to do a good job on the day of the fight. Mentally, I got even stronger. I'm very well-prepared and focused on my goal, which is victory."
To complete what could be his 12th successful title defense, the Canada-based Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu specialist may have found a loophole in his Lineker's game.
"He's not a very good guy on the ground. He survives in the ground fight. When someone takes him down, he always tries to get up. He is taken down, goes to the corner of the cage, and tries to get up. He won't do jiu-jitsu with me. If he does, I have no doubt that I will finish him," the AMC Pankration mainstay offered.
If "The Flash" survives the American Top Team representative on 11 March at the Singapore Indoor Stadium, the bantamweight division has some solid contenders that could give the 41-year-old division king a run for his crown. Some of those combatants are Fabricio "Wonder Boy" Andrade, "Pretty Boy" Kwon Won Il, and Stephen "The Sniper" Loman.
While a matchup against any one of those competitors will be intriguing, the titleholder with a 24-4 career MMA record won't fall into the temptation of looking past his next foe.
"I don't think about the other opponents now. I think of the one in front of me. I don't care who's next. Now my focus is on Lineker. When I face one of them, I will think about them," Fernandes said.
Always seeking a challenge, though, "The Flash" sheds light on his plans after Lineker.
"I'm thinking about moving up and fighting in the featherweight division. But, as I said, now my focus is on Lineker. I need to defend my belt before thinking about other goals," the world champion with a 12-1 record at ONE expressed.
Download the ONE Super App to stay updated on the latest news about ONE: Lights Out, happening on March 11, and ONE X on March 26.
Source: Media Release
