Askren farewell fight headlines ‘ONE: Immortal Pursuit’
Fans will be treated to another exciting evening of authentic martial arts action, as the best martial artists in the world take to the ONE Championship cage. In the main event, reigning ONE Welterweight World Champion Ben “Funky” Askren will defend his title against former ONE Lightweight World Champion Shinya “Tobikan Judan” Aoki.
This will be Askren’s final bout as a professional before he retires from professional competition to take an executive position with ONE Championship.
A former NCAA Division I All-American and US Olympian, Ben “Funky” Askren is a collegiate wrestling legend and one of the finest martial artists in the world today. Askren joined ONE Championship in 2014, taking the promotion by storm and capturing the ONE Welterweight World Championship with a resounding technical knockout victory over Nobutatsu Suzuki.
Since then, Askren has successfully defended the title on multiple occasions, and has stopped six of his last seven opponents to maintain a perfect 17-0 professional record. In what is being billed as the last bout of Askren’s illustrious professional career, the American is set to defend his title against the legendary Shinya Aoki of Japan.
Global martial arts veteran Shinya “Tobikan Judan” Aoki of Shizuoka, Japan, is one of the world’s most decorated athletes. He is the DREAM Lightweight Champion, former Shooto Welterweight Champion, and the former ONE Lightweight World Champion.
The 34-year-old Aoki is a Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt under the famed Yuki Nakai and has won multiple grappling tournaments all over the world. Aoki also holds a black belt in judo and is widely considered one of the best pure grapplers in professional martial arts competition today.
In his next bout, Aoki makes his ONE Championship welterweight debut, taking on reigning ONE Welterweight World Champion Ben Askren of the United States for the title.
Other Bouts
In other cards, Singaporean top lightweight contender Amir Khan is set to face Arian Pang. He is considered one of the most promising young talents to represent Singapore on the international stage of martial arts.
Khan is currently riding a five-bout win streak, with all of his victories coming by way of scintillating finish, including one by submission and four by devastating knockout.
Adrian “The Hunter” Pang is a martial arts veteran from Queensland, Australia, with a 22-10-2 professional record. The veteran Pang has decimated opponents with his incredible power and no-frills approach to striking in nearly two decades as a professional.
Leandro “Brodinho” Issa is a 34-year-old Brazilian jiu-jitsu world champion black belt from Sao Paulo, Brazil, who trains and competes out of the world-renowned Evolve Fight Team in Singapore. With a record of 14 wins and six losses, including nine wins by submission and two by knockout, Issa has proven to be an exciting competitor with a penchant for spectacular victories. A pioneer of ONE Championship’s bantamweight division, Issa will take on Dae Hwan Kim in his next assignment.
South Korean martial artist Dae Hwan Kim owns a professional record of 12-1 with one draw. Kim is one of the top contenders at bantamweight, and will look to make his return to the ONE Championship cage a successful one when he takes on Leandro Issa.
Singaporean female strawweight contender “Mighty” May Ooi is a martial artist with a professional record of 3-2. A former champion swimmer, Ooi is now set to make her second appearance inside the ONE Championship cage opposite Cambodia’s Vy Srey Khouch.
Vy Srey Khouch is a highly-regarded Cambodian martial artist and former female boxer who competed in numerous international competitions. In her next bout, she will take on Singaporean women’s martial arts standout, May Ooi.
Li Kai Wen of Tianjin is the ONE Featherweight Beijing Tournament 2014 Champion and is one of the most fearsome young competitors from China. Li will be faced with a tough challenge in fellow rising star Ahmed Mujtaba.
Ahmed “The Wolverine” Mujtaba is a Pakistani martial artist competing in ONE Championship’s stacked featherweight division. Mujtaba makes his highly-anticipated return to the ONE Championship cage against Li Kai Wen.
Japanese martial arts veteran Mei “V.V” Yamaguchi is a female atomweight standout and a former ONE world title challenger from Tokyo. Yamaguchi will now take on fast-rising Gina Iniong.
Top Filipino women’s martial arts contender Gina “Conviction” Iniong of Baguio City, Philippines, is a six-time national wushu champion and member of the renowned Team Lakay. She owns a professional record of 6-2, with four of her six victories coming by thrilling finish, including two highlight-reel submissions and two knockouts. Next up, Iniong takes on veteran Mei Yamaguchi.
Arnaud “The Game” LePont is a lightweight veteran from France who sports a professional record of 11 wins and five losses. He now returns to action after a short break to take on Richard Corminal.
Filipino lightweight competitor Richard “Lion Heart” Corminal is a Filipino martial artist based in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Corminal now aims for redemption, as he takes on Arnaud LePont in his second appearance in the promotion.
Yang “The Pugilist” Fei of Hubei, China, is a newcomer to ONE Championship, and one of the most promising young Chinese martial arts talents in the game. Making his promotional debut, Yang will seek victory against Muhammad Aiman in a three-round bout.
Former amateur standout Muhammad Aiman of Malaysia is one of Malaysia’s top martial artists. The 22-year-old is now set to take on another top test when he goes up against Yang Fei.
Tiffany “Soul Crusher” Teo is a female martial artist who competes in ONE Championship’s women’s flyweight division. Teo’s next assignment is against Puja Tomar.
Flyweight competitor Puja Tomar is a martial artist from India with a professional record of three wins and one loss. The former India wushu champion Tomar now makes her way to the biggest stage in Asian martial arts as she is set to make her ONE Championship debut against top Singaporean talent Tiffany Teo.
Chinese bantamweight prospect Miao Li Tao and Cambodian Khun Khmer practitioner Sim Bunsrun are set to kick off all the action at ONE: IMMORTAL PURSUIT in the evening’s first bout offering. The two strikers will lock horns in an exciting three-round contest, setting the pace of what should be an amazing night of martial arts competition.
