On Sunday, Robert Tellez revealed that former ONE Championship heavyweight contender Marcus “Buchecha” Almeida would be making his UFC debut against Martin Buday in Abu Dhabi later this month. He will be the second alum from the Singapore-based promotion booked for the card after former two-weight champion Reiner de Ridder, who meets Robert Whittaker in the main event.
For much of its history, ONE has presented itself as a UFC alternative, boasting the likes of Bibiano Fernandes, Shinya Aoki, and siblings Angela and Christian Lee. The last few years, however, have seen it hold more Muay Thai and kickboxing fights than it has MMA ones. Meanwhile, many of its MMA fighters, including the champions, have been left wanting, something that played a major role in de Ridder’s departure.
Of those remaining, these three could heed his advice and bet on themselves in the world’s largest MMA promotion…
(It must be noted that in ONE, every weight class is generally 10 lbs. higher. Thus, atomweight is 115 instead of 105; strawweight is 125 instead of 115, and so forth. Exceptions are lightweight [170 vs. 155], welterweight [185 vs. 170], middleweight [205 vs. 185], and light heavyweight [225 vs. 205].)
Oumar “Reug Reug” Kane is the current ONE heavyweight champion, having taken the title from Anatoly Malykhin in one of the sport’s biggest upsets last year. He is a physical specimen, packing 258 pounds into his six-foot frame. He is also a master wrestler, having gone undefeated in sixteen fights in lutte avec frappe, the traditional Senegalese wrestling style, before entering MMA.
In terms of MMA marketability, Kane may be one of Dana White’s dream signings. He hails from Africa, a region that the UFC has been desperate to crack for a long time. He also has a decision win over Almeida, which could set the stage for a major rematch should the two ascend to contender status. Regardless of how he fares in his rematch against Malykhin this November, he may be seen as the successor to Francis Ngannou.
Roberto “Robocop” Soldic has been constantly regarded as one of the best fighters outside the UFC. Almost everywhere he has gone, he has won a title. His run in KSW is one of the best in the Polish promotion’s history: he was twice a welterweight champion and also claimed the middleweight title.
Soldic’s run has left much to be desired. His debut ended in a no contest after an inadvertent knee to the groin, then he was knocked out in his second fight. He has since rebounded with a knockout win that should entitle him to a title shot against either Christian Lee or Malykhin. Winning either fight should increase his profile massively – he is only 30, after all.
Stamp Fairtex is a history maker – the first fighter, male or female, to win titles in three disciplines: MMA, Muay Thai, and kickboxing. She is currently on medical hiatus, having had to vacate the MMA atomweight title after experiencing a setback in her recovery from a knee injury.
When healthy, Fairtex is a very versatile fighter. Her striking is a given, but she is also adept on the ground, boasting two submission wins in her resume. In a strawweight division desperate for high-quality competition for Weili Zhang, those skills can carry her to the upper echelon of the rankings.
This is not to say that ONE’s MMA fighters are bad. Rather, as it seemingly continues to downscale its MMA operations, those three names are the likeliest to try showcasing their talents elsewhere.
The rest of the roster has some decent names like the aforementioned Lee, Malykhin, and fellow champions Joshua Pacio and Jingnan Xiong. However, none of them have the reputation that the three aforementioned names carry. Thus, they are highly unlikely to be seen in the Octagon.
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