Ok Rae Yoon Vs. Alibeg Rasulov To Headline ONE Fight Night 23, Interim Lightweight World Title Up For Grabs

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ONE Fight Night 23 has a new main event, and there's golden ramifications written all over it. Former ONE Lightweight MMA World Champion Ok Rae Yoon meets unbeaten star Alibeg Rasulov for the interim crown on Saturday, 6 July.

The pivotal pitting inside Bangkok, Thailand's Lumpinee Boxing Stadium received a bump up to the top of the show following the cancellation of Jackie Buntan and Anissa Meksen's clash for the ONE Women's Strawweight Kickboxing World Title.

The bout fell apart after injury forced Buntan out of the clash. So, as a result, Ok and Rasulov will now duke it out to decide the next challenger to ONE Lightweight MMA World Champion Christian Lee.

Having held the gold once before, Ok knows what it takes to reach the pinnacle. The top contender first claimed the crown after stunning wins over Eddie Alvarez and Marat Gafurov led him to a monumental meeting against Lee at ONE: REVOLUTION in September 2021.

The South Korean edged out "The Warrior" that night across five rounds, leaving with the World Title in a shocking affair. However, his stint as king didn't last long as a second-round TKO defeat to Lee in the rematch brought his reign to an abrupt end in 2022.

Since then, Ok has re-entered the win column after toppling Lowen Tynanes in May 2023 at ONE Fight Night 10, seeing the 33-year-old another ascend up the World Title ladder once again.

But as quickly as his dreams are manifesting, the unbeaten Rasulov has all the talents to bring the Ok's run to an end next month at ONE Fight Night 23.

The Turkish tangler has produced a perfect 13-0 resume across his professional career, blitzing any and all opposition that have dared to step in his way. Rasulov also boasts 10 finishes out of those 13 wins, with six coming by knockout. So he certainly has the firepower to threaten Ok.

His reputation has immediately put him in the running for a shot at Lee, and toppling a former king in Ok would go a long way in establishing himself in one of the most exciting MMA divisions in the world.