Fabricio Andrade and Jonathan Haggerty will now be facing off at ONE Fight Night 16. The fight had originally been scheduled for next month but has been postponed until November.
Andrade and Haggerty were booked to headline ONE Fight Night 15. No reason has been given for the postponement although both fighters have made it clear that the delay wasn’t on their end.
The belt is vacant because former champion Petchtanong Banchamek was stripped of the title after failing a drug test. Both Andrade and Haggerty were crowned as champions in different sports earlier this year.
Andrade won the bantamweight MMA belt after stopping John Lineker at ONE Fight Night 6. He has yet to defend that title but has plenty of kickboxing experience and fought ten times for Kunlun Fight.
Haggerty became the bantamweight Muay Thai champion when he stopped Nong-O Gaiyanghadao at ONE Fight Night 6. He had previously held the flyweight belt but doesn’t appear to have any kickboxing experience.
The ONE Bantamweight Kickboxing World Title showdown between Jonathan Haggerty and Fabricio Andrade is now the main event of ONE Fight Night 16 on Prime Video! ⭐️ Who's ready to witness the crowning of a new two-sport king? 👑👑
#ONEFightNight16 | Nov 3 at 8PM ET
🇺🇸🇨🇦 Watch… pic.twitter.com/Na7QdShDTm— ONE Championship (@ONEChampionship) September 12, 2023
Long wait
It means Stephen Loman’s long wait for a shot at Andrade’s MMA title is set to continue. The #2 ranked bantamweight is believed to be next in line for a shot at the Brazilian.
Loman is on an 11 fight winning streak and has won three out of three for ONE Championship. But the bantamweight title has been tied up with Andrade’s first match with Lineker ending in a no contest, necessitating a rematch.
Instead of facing Andrade he has been matched with John Lineker at ONE Fight Night 14 this month. Should Loman win he will surely be handed a title shot although the delay means it won’t be until 2024.
Stephen Loman 🇵🇭 MANHANDLED Bibiano Fernandes to take the win by unanimous decision! Should he face the winner of Lineker vs. Andrade II? 👑 pic.twitter.com/mKbJhfTpxC
— ONE Championship (@ONEChampionship) November 19, 2022
Traditional venue
ONE Fight Night 16 is taking place at Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok. This has become the traditional venue for all of the promotion’s cards, although there is an event in Singapore coming up later this month.
ONE Fight Night 14 is set for September 29th at the Singapore Indoor Stadium and will be headlined by an interim atomweight title fight between Seo Hee Ham and Stamp Fairtex. It will be the promotion’s first event in the country since March.
ONE Fight Night 16, Bangkok, November 3rd
Kickboxing: Jonathan Haggerty vs. Fabricio Andrade (For vacant bantamweight belt)
