Ben Askren Set to Return at ONE Event in April
Ben Askren Set to Return at ONE Event in April
ONE Championship welterweight king Ben Askren will return at Manila card on April 21.
ONE Championship are planning a blockbuster event in April with two title fights set to take place on the card.
ONE chairman and founder Chatri Sityodtong broke the news in an interview with ABS/CBN Sports on Wednesday. FloCombat has since confirmed with sources close to the event as well.
"April 21st in Manila is going to be a massive, massive event, we're gonna have Ben Askren defending his title, we also have Eduard Folayang defending his title, and we'll have a bunch of other Filipino superstars on the card." Sitdyodtong said.
The April event will mark the long awaited return of Askren--a fighter who is widely recognized as one of the top welterweight fighters in the world. The former Bellator champion turned ONE 170-pound king has been flawless since signing with his current promotion back in 2014.
The only thing close to a blemish on the former two-time NCAA Division I national champion's record was a bout with Luis Santos that results in a "No Contest" due to the challenger suffering an eye poke in the opening round.
The Milwaukee native continued his reign by steamrolling Nikolay Aleksakhin one year later in the Philippines, but the fight was deemed a non-title bout when the Russian failed to make the official weight limit.
While there were several rumored bouts attached to Askren throughout 2016, Wednesday's announcement marks the official return of pound-for-pound great. There has yet to be an opponent announced for the matchup, but that news is expected to drop in the coming weeks.
The April event will also bring the return of ONE lightweight champion Eduard Folayang.
The 32-year-old Filipino is currently riding a three-fight winning streak that includes a victory over world renown grappling ace Shinya Aoki at ONE 49 back in November.
There has yet to be an official opponent announced for Folayang as well, but Sityodtong has made it clear both champions will compete at the Manila event on April 21.
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ONE chairman and founder Chatri Sityodtong broke the news in an interview with ABS/CBN Sports on Wednesday. FloCombat has since confirmed with sources close to the event as well.
"April 21st in Manila is going to be a massive, massive event, we're gonna have Ben Askren defending his title, we also have Eduard Folayang defending his title, and we'll have a bunch of other Filipino superstars on the card." Sitdyodtong said.
The April event will mark the long awaited return of Askren--a fighter who is widely recognized as one of the top welterweight fighters in the world. The former Bellator champion turned ONE 170-pound king has been flawless since signing with his current promotion back in 2014.
The only thing close to a blemish on the former two-time NCAA Division I national champion's record was a bout with Luis Santos that results in a "No Contest" due to the challenger suffering an eye poke in the opening round.
The Milwaukee native continued his reign by steamrolling Nikolay Aleksakhin one year later in the Philippines, but the fight was deemed a non-title bout when the Russian failed to make the official weight limit.
While there were several rumored bouts attached to Askren throughout 2016, Wednesday's announcement marks the official return of pound-for-pound great. There has yet to be an opponent announced for the matchup, but that news is expected to drop in the coming weeks.
The April event will also bring the return of ONE lightweight champion Eduard Folayang.
The 32-year-old Filipino is currently riding a three-fight winning streak that includes a victory over world renown grappling ace Shinya Aoki at ONE 49 back in November.
There has yet to be an official opponent announced for Folayang as well, but Sityodtong has made it clear both champions will compete at the Manila event on April 21.
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