ONE Fight Night 7: Eko Roni Saputra Out To Prove He Belongs Among ONE Championship’s Top Flyweights

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Bangkok, February 21: Surging ONE Championship flyweight Eko Roni Saputra has plans to break into the division's top five, and it starts with his biggest test this weekend.

The Indonesian star will meet #3-ranked Danny "The King" Kingad at ONE Fight Night 7: Lineker vs. Andrade II this Saturday, 25 February, inside Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand.

"I am more focused. I want everything to flow the way it should. That being said, I want to open this first fight of the year in a spectacular way. I want to give my best and fight with my maximum abilities, especially for Indonesia," Saputra said.

Since opening his account in ONE with a bump in the road back in 2019, Saputra has become one of the most credible competitors in the flyweight category.

The freestyle wrestling champion has won seven bouts consecutively since then, and he has never seen the second round in his professional career.

ONE 162: Zhang vs. Di Bella offered the sternest test of his career against Yodkaikaew Fairtex, but the inevitable was in store once again for Saputra, who submitted the Thai veteran in just over two minutes.

This weekend, the difficulty will be kicked up a notch against the prestigious Team Lakay's Kingad - a well-versed veteran of ONE.

Looking ahead at the battle at ONE Fight Night 7, Saputra is well aware of what a victory would do for him and his stature in the flyweight division.

While he does have eyes on gold, the 8-1 battler isn't fixated on the ramifications of the bout, focussing only on his performance first and foremost. Until his hand is raised, at least in the flyweight's eyes, everything else is irrelevant.

"I had no pressure from my team as they believe in me. It is not a problem for them whether I take over the rank or not, but it is more to how I can fight at my best. I want to play with my best skills, as there are no demands from the team," Saputra said.

"However, I have placed all of these expectations upon myself, because the only one who can decide whether I succeed or not is myself.

"So, I want to prove myself again by being in the top five. I want to compete. If I lose against a top-five opponent, it means that I am not yet worthy to be there, right? This is why I want to prove that I belong there, and I will keep challenging all other fighters above me."

Source: Media Release