In a recent press release, promotion officials revealed that ONE 171: Qatar will include the fifth fight between bantamweight rivals Bibiano Fernandes (24-6) and Kevin Belingon (20-10). In addition, former ONE double-champ Martin Nguyen (15-7) will take on Shamil Gasanov (14-1) at featherweight, while welterweight Roberto Soldic (20-4, 1NC) returns against Dagi Arslanaliev (9-2).

The fights join two previously announced contests at the Lusail Sports Arena on February 20, 2025: Jonathan Haggerty vs. Wei Rui, which sees Haggerty put his bantamweight kickboxing championship on the line, and a strawweight MMA title bout between champ Joshua Pacio and Jarred Brooks.

The quintilogy between Fernandes and Belingon is nearly unheard of in MMA. Fernandes, now 44, was once highly coveted by the UFC, and in 2012 they announced he’d agreed to fight with Roland Delorme at UFC 149. Shortly after, Fernandes revealed that while he had been in negotiations with the company, he had never actually signed a contract. Instead, he inked a deal with ONE Championship, going on to become a multi-time bantamweight champion.

Fernandes has not fought since 2022, however, and is coming off back-to-back losses. In his series with Kevin Belingon, he is up 3-1. As for fellow ex-champ Belingon, he has likewise been out of action since 2022, and sits on a five-fight skid including two losses to his rival.

Martin Nguyen will be returning to action for the first time since a loss to Garry Tonon last January. The former bantamweight and featherweight champ has been trading wins and losses since 2021. Gasanov meanwhile has won three straight, and has managed to keep busy, picking up three victories in ONE Championship in 2024.

Roberto Soldic, who is 1-1 in a pair of fights with UFC middleweight champ Dricus Du Plessis under the KSW banner, was a big free agent signing for ONE a couple of years back. He’s fought just twice, however, with his promotional debut ending in a No Contest due to an accidental groin strike. His next bout saw him finished by former ONE welterweight champ Zebastian Kadestam.

His opponent at ONE 171, Saygid Guseyn Arslanaliev (a.k.a. “Dagi”), has not competed in MMA since a 2021 knockout of Timofey Nastyukhin.

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Tonon took his BJJ black belt and used it as his base to begin the transition to MMA in 2018, earning a ONE featherweight MMA title shot by 2022 with a 6-0 record. He lost that bout to then-champion Thanh Le, but has gone on to win his next two, including a kneebar over undefetead Dagestani prospect Shamil Gasanov last year. As for Nguyen, after losing his featherweight title to Le in 2020 he has fell twice by knockout, going 2-2 since then. The former double champ is nearing the final stretch of his career at age 34, but two recent wins shows he has something left in the tank. Both men tried to claw their way back towards the belt, but Tonon clawed so fiercely that he tore through Nguyen in under a round.

It did not take long for Garry Tonon to ground the fight; he took down Nguyen and was in full mount inside of forty-five seconds. As Nguyen tried to escape, Tonon easily flowed with the position and transitioned to the back, locking in the body triangle. Martin could do naught but defend, which he did successfully for four minutes. Yet the writing was always on the wall, and with twenty seconds left in the first round the grappling champion forced the tap with his letha rear-naked choke, defending his number one contender spot.

After that impressive win, his third in a row by finish, Tonon has surely earned another title shot. Champion Tang Kai will unify the belts in a rematch against interim belt-holder Thanh Le, who Kai took the undisputed belt from originally. He will target a bout against the winner of that fight, but he stated in his post-fight interview his desire for it to be against Le, so he can claim his revenge.

Garry closed out his interview with a bit of fun, saying ‘I’m mmediately buying a Japanese toilet when I get home,” and thanking the Japanese fans for their hospitality.

Official Result: Garry Tonon def. Martin Nguyen by Submission (rear-naked choke) Round 1, 4:41

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Nguyen (15-6) and Tonon (8-1) will face off at ONE 165 on January 28, 2024. News of the booking was announced by ONE officials on Tuesday.

The event, headlined by a striking dream match between Japanese kickboxing star Takeru and Muay Thai star Rodtang, takes place at the Ariake Arena in Tokyo, Japan.

Australia’s Nguyen is 2-1 across his last three fights, and is coming off a win over Leonardo Casotti at ONE Fight Night 7 this past February. It will be almost a year between fights as a result.

In 2017, Martin Nguyen won both the ONE lightweight and featherweight titles, and would pursue a third title, unsuccessfully, in the promotion’s bantamweight division. Nguyen defeded his featherweight title three times before losing it to Thanh Le in 2020, but was never able to defend his lightweight crown, and vacated that title due to injury.

Tonnon, a multi-time BJJ world champion, made the transition to MMA in 2018, and has spent his entire fighting career with ONE Championship. He came up short against Thanh Le in a bid for featherweight gold in 2022, but won his next two fights, both via submission, against Johnny Nunez and Shamil Gasanov.

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Among the standouts, lightweight champ Christian Lee puts his title on the line against Ok Rae Yoon, with the challenger fresh off a win over former UFC/Bellator MMA champ Eddie Alvarez. Also on the card, the rubber match in the trilogy between strawweight champion Joshua Pacio and Japanese ex-champ Yosuke Saruta.

Joining those two title fights is a bantamweight kickboxing championship bout, the return of teenage sensation Victoria Lee, former double-champ Martin Nguyen, and the debut of BJJ world champ Marcus Almeida.

ONE: Revolution kicks off Friday at 7:30AM ET live from Singapore. Full weigh-in and hydration results, released in a press release earlier this evening, can be found below.

ONE Championship: Revolution Weigh-In and Hydration Results

ONE Lightweight World Championship (70.4 KG – 77.1 KG)
Christian Lee (76.50 KG, 1.0044) vs. Ok Rae Yoon (77.10 KG, 1.0229)

ONE Bantamweight Kickboxing World Championship (61.3 KG – 65.8 KG)
Capitan Petchyindee Academy (65.45 KG, 1.0136) vs. Mehdi Zatout (65.80 KG, 1.0233)

ONE Strawweight World Championship (52.3 KG – 56.7 KG)
Joshua Pacio (56.65 KG, 1.0053) vs. Yosuke Saruta (56.45 KG, 1.0018)

Mixed Martial Arts – Featherweight (65.9 KG – 70.3 KG)
Martin Nguyen (70.30 KG, 1.0207) vs. Kim Jae Woong (70.15 KG, 1.0099)

Mixed Martial Arts – Heavyweight (102.2 KG – 120.2 KG)
Amir Aliakbari (118.25 KG, 1.0248) vs. Anatoly Malykhin (111.90 KG, 1.0107)

Mixed Martial Arts – Atomweight (47.7 KG – 52.2 KG)
Victoria Lee (51.80 KG, 1.0023) vs. Victoria Souza (51.50 KG, 1.0053)

Mixed Martial Arts – Strawweight (52.3 KG – 56.7 KG)
Lito Adiwang (56.45 KG, 1.0128) vs. Hexigetu (56.70 KG, 1.0168)

Muay Thai – Flyweight (56.8 KG – 61.2 KG)
Petchdam Petchyindee Academy (60.80 KG, 1.0087) vs. Taiki Naito (61.20 KG, 1.0244)

Mixed Martial Arts – Heavyweight (102.2 KG – 120.2 KG)
Marcus Almeida (116.05 KG, 1.0214) vs. Anderson Silva (119.10 KG, 1.0044)

Kickboxing – Bantamweight (61.3 KG – 65.8 KG)
Petchtanong Petchfergus (65.55 KG, 1.0107) vs. Zhang Chenglong (65.80 KG, 1.0031)

Mixed Martial Arts – Featherweight (65.9 KG – 70.3 KG)
James Yang (69.90 KG, 1.0040) vs. Roel Rosauro (69.00 KG, 1.0195)

Hydration values less than or equal to 1.0250 earn a passing mark, while values greater than or equal to 1.0251 earn a failing mark. Athletes who failed weight and hydration tests on Day 1 or Day 2 are given another chance to clear tests on the morning of the event.

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It was a night full of intense action, exciting finishes, and upsets. Two champions were dethroned, with Martin Nguyen dropping the featherweight title to Thanh Le, and Aung La N Sang losing his middleweight crown (he also holds light heavyweight gold) to Reinier de Ridder.

Christian Lee (lightweight) and Xiong Jing Nan (women’s strawweight) both retained their titles.

Check below for a gallery of highlights from Inside the Matrix.

ONE Championship: Inside the Matrix Results

ONE Middleweight World Championship: Reinier De Ridder def. Aung La N Sang by Submission (Rear-Naked Choke) at 3:26 minutes of round 1
ONE Lightweight World Championship: Christian Lee def. Iuri Lapicus by TKO (Strikes) at 2:19 minutes of round 1
ONE Featherweight World Championship: Thanh Le def. Martin Nguyen by Knockout (KO) at 2:19 minutes of round 3
ONE Women’s Strawweight World Championship: Xiong Jing Nan def. Tiffany Teo by Unanimous Decision (UD) after 5 rounds
Mixed Martial Arts – Lightweight: Antonio Caruso def. Eduard Folayang by Unanimous Decision (UD) after 3 rounds
Mixed Martial Arts – Atomweight: Ritu Phogat def. Nou Srey Pov by TKO (Strikes) at 2:02 minutes of round 2

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Nguyen’s featherweight title was on the line against Thanh Le, a legit prospect with a 100% finish rate. Nguyen was under fire early from Le, forced to shake off a number of attacks. The champion appeared to eat his strikes, and at least one kick, well. But Le was proving to be very much up to the challenge. Le relied heavily on his kicks as the round progressed, but Nguyen was able to press the action, continually coming forward, putting Le’s back to the cage. And Nguyen’s own kicks were arguably more powerful than the challenger’s.

In the second round, Nguyen found a home for his overhand right, and continued to bring the fight to the challenger. Le answered with a kick to the body, and showed some excellent lateral movement. The champ mixed in a few body shots, mixing up his strikes well. As the second round progressed, the question of Le’s cardio appeared more and more likely to be answered — to date, he had never gone the distance. In a three round fight, let alone five rounds with a title on the line. But through two, he was certainly finding some success.

As the third opened up, Le appeared as fresh as ever. Eating an overhand right, however, certainly got his attention. Nguyen went on the attack, ducking under a kick, landing a leg kick, winging lefts and rights. A right hand landed to the jaw. Le fired back, but Nguyen was getting the better of what had become a firefight. Le was cracked a couple more times, Nguyen’s right hand being his best weapon. Le had slowed, but his own right hand connected, and dropped the champ! Nguyen was in serious trouble. The pair wound up in a scramble, with Le connecting again. Nguyen was out on his feet, and the ref had seen enough!

Thanh Le 🇻🇳🇺🇸 shocks the world, KNOCKING OUT Martin Nguyen to claim the ONE Featherweight World Title! @ThanhLeMMA #InsideTheMatrix #WeAreONE #ONEChampionship

How to watch ONE: INSIDE THE MATRIX 👉 https://t.co/xoYhoMn3qk pic.twitter.com/IurvP9abET

— ONE Championship (@ONEChampionship) October 30, 2020

Ahead of Friday’s title fight, Martin Nguyen had said that the featherweight division was where he belonged, after pursuing other titles in the past. Now, he’ll have to regroup, and start to put together another run in the weight class. Although a second fight between the pair is not outside the realm of possibility. Thanh Le, meanwhile, has graduated from prospect to champ.

Official Result: Thanh Le def. Martin Nguyen by knockout, Round 3, 2:19

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In the co-main event, meanwhile, Christian Lee had his own undefeated challenger to contend with in the form of Iuri Lapicus. Still in his early 20s, Lee, brother of atomweight champ Angela Lee, seemed to have hit his stride, winning the ONE lightweight grand prix in his last out.

The other two title fights on the card were no less promising: Xiong Jing Nan put her strawweight title on the line against Tiffany Teo in one. In the other, Martin Nguyen was set to defend his featherweight belt against Thanh Le. In the past year or so, Le had emerged as a top prospect, with a 100% finish rate, including an appearance on Dana White’s Contender Series (which despite the finish, somehow didn’t earn him a UFC deal).

ONE Championship: Inside the Matrix kicks off at 8:30AM ET. Check back then for results from the card, and a live stream of all the action (where available).

ONE Championship: Inside the Matrix Results

Reinier de Ridder def. Aung La N Sang (c) by submission (rear-naked choke), Round 1, 3:26 – for the ONE middleweight championship
Christian Lee (c) def. Iuri Lapicus  by TKO, Round 1, 2:19 – for the ONE lightweight championship
Thanh Le def. Martin Nguyen (c) by knockout, Round 3, 2:19 – for the ONE featherweight championship
Xiong Jing Nan (c) def. Tiffany Teo by unanimous decision – for the ONE strawweight championship
Antonio Caruso def. Eduard Folayang by unanimous decision
Ritu Phogat def. Nou Srey Pov by TKO, Round 2, 2:02

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In the main event, middleweight (and light heavyweight) champ Aung La N Sang is set to take on the undefeated Reinier De Ridder. The Sanford MMA fighter known as “The Burmese Python” is on the best run of his career, and had emerged as one of the promotion’s true homegrown stars.

In the co-main event, lightweight champion Christian Lee will take on an undefeated opponent of his own in Iuri Lapicus. The other two title fights at the event feature strawweight champ Xiong Jing Nan of China defending her belt against Tiffany Teo, and featherweight champ Martin Nguyen facing off with top prospect Thanh Le.

Weigh-in and hydration results for Inside the Matrix (provided by the promotion) can be found below.

ONE Championship: Inside the Matrix Weigh-In and Hydration Results

ONE Middleweight World Championship (84.0 KG – 93.0 KG)
Aung La N Sang (92.7 KG, 1.0112) vs Reinier De Ridder (92.65 KG, 1.0044)

ONE Lightweight World Championship (70.4 KG – 77.1 KG)
Christian Lee (75.7 KG, 1.0005) vs Iuri Lapicus (77.1 KG, 1.0248)

ONE Featherweight World Championship (65.9 KG – 70.3 KG)
Martin Nguyen (70.25 KG, 1.0061) vs Thanh Le (69.55 KG, 1.0049)

ONE Women’s Strawweight World Championship (52.3 KG – 56.7 KG)
Xiong Jing Nan (56.25 KG, 1.0014) vs Tiffany Teo (56.6 KG, 1.0168)

Mixed Martial Arts – Lightweight (70.4 KG – 77.1 KG)
Antonio Caruso (76.2 KG, 1.0061) vs Eduard Folayang (76.5 KG, 1.0087)

Mixed Martial Arts – Atomweight (47.7 KG – 52.2 KG)
Ritu Phogat (52.05 KG, 1.0183) vs Nou Srey Pov (52.0 KG, 1.0103)

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Nguyen (13-3) has been paired up with Thanh Le at the Singapore-based event. It’s a fight that Le himself suggested could spark a rivalry. But “The Situ-Asian” doesn’t quite see it that way. “He’s just another opponent on the list. It’s my job to take him out, defend this title and move on to the next,” he told Cageside Press during the Inside the Matrix media day this week.

Le stands out among his fellow prospects thanks to a 100% finish rate. He’s never gone the distance in a three round fight, win or lose. He’s also never been in a five-round bout, something Nguyen has experience with.

Nguyen said this week that he’d love to take Le into deep waters. “100%,” he said. If he gets the chance, of course. “We’ve studied everything about Thanh Le. There is no game plan, it’s going in there and purely showcasing my skills and doing what I do best man,” said Nguyen, “and that’s laying hands on my opponent. But in terms of Thanh Le, his record and everything like that, I think the longest he’s been is like two minutes and 35 seconds in the second round. I’d love to take him to the deep waters if it gets there. For me, it’s up to myself to do my job from the get go, from that first round.”

If he secures the win Friday, don’t expect Martin Nguyen to go back to dabbling in other weight classes. Nguyen once held the ONE lightweight title, and made an attempt to hold three belts by moving to the promotion’s bantamweight division as well.

“This is my legacy man. The featherweight division is where I belong,” stated Nguyen. “Going up a weight division to fight at lightweight doesn’t motivate me. Going down a division at bantamweight still doesn’t motivate me. There’s only one fight that I’ll go down for, it’s the one fight that I realistically thought I’d won.” That would no doubt be against Bibiano Fernandes. The pair met in 2018, with Nguyen losing a split decision. “At the moment, everything is at featherweight for me and that’s where I feel good, that’s where I feel safe and healthy, and at my best.”

Watch the full ONE Championship: Inside the Matrix media day session with Martin Nguyen above.

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Those would include names with Aung La N Sang, Martin Nguyen, and Xiong Jing Nan.

ONE Chairman and CEO Chatri Sityodtong announced the news Monday on social media. In all, the four title bouts break down as follows:

Middleweight World Championship
Aung La N sang (26-10) vs Reinier De Ridder (12-0)

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