Danny “The King” Kingad got the support of another former World Champion when he returns to ONE Championship this Saturday, Feb. 25.
The third-ranked flyweight contender takes on Eko Roni Saputra in a three-round MMA bout at ONE Fight Night 7: Lineker vs. Andrade II inside Lumpinee Boxing Stadium, and no less than former flyweight king Adriano “Mikinho” Moraes has his back.
Moraes is scheduled to fight ONE Flyweight World Champion Demetrious “Mighty Mouse” Johnson for the third time this May, but while he’s totally focused on his preparations for that bout, he’s also keeping a close eye on this tussle.
“It’s going to be another great fight in this division. This division is very strong, with very tough athletes,” Moraes said.
“Danny Kingad has already been a contender and has been improving his grappling game a lot. I believe it will be a very busy fight, with Danny Kingad trying to keep the fight standing and Eko Roni Saputra trying to put Kingad down since his background is wrestling.”
Moraes is certainly familiar with the Filipino’s game.
“Mikinho” has already faced and conquered Kingad, dealing the young Team Lakay representative the first loss of his career back in 2017.
That loss sparked something in Kingad as “The King” bounced back with six straight wins, including victories over some of the biggest names in the division - Reece McLaren, Tatsumitsu Wada, and Yuya Wakamatsu.
Kingad dropped his last fight against Kairat Akhmetov, but Moraes believes that the Filipino’s experience will pull through when he squares off against the red-hot Indonesian.
“Danny Kingad is a young fighter who has been evolving a lot. He’s been doing good fights and has already beaten very tough opponents,” Moraes said.
“As for Saputra, I don’t know much about him. I just know that his background is wrestling, and that he likes to submit his opponents. But I believe Danny Kingad will win this fight on points or by technical knockout.”
ONE Fight Night 7: Linker vs. Andrade II is available at watch.onefc.com, as well as at One Sports and One Sports+ on Philippine television.
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