Gordon Ryan will make his ONE Championship debut on August 27th. The three-time ADCC World champion and two-time IBJJF No-Gi World champion will face Shinya Aoki in an openweight grappling match.
ONE Championship CEO Chatri Sityodtong broke the news on Facebook just now:
BREAKING NEWS: Gordon Ryan will make his debut in ONE Championship against Shinya Aoki in an openweight grappling super match on August 27!
Posted by Chatri Sityodtong on Monday, 10 May 2021
Aoki competes in ONE Championship’s lightweight division which is for hydrated fighters weighing 170lbs or less. Ryan weighed in at 217.5lbs for his most recent match without hydration restrictions.
Ryan has gone 43 matches without a loss in BJJ and submission grappling matches and has finished each of his last 14 opponents. He is widely regarded as being the pound for pound king in his sport.
Aoki holds a black belt in BJJ and is a two time ONE Championship lightweight champion but is primarily an MMA fighter and very rarely competes in submission grappling. In 2019 he faced Ryan’s team mate Garry Tonon and was submitted with a heel hook.
There are currently no further details available about the August 27th event. ONE: ‘Dangal’ is being broadcast this Saturday and is headlined by a heavyweight fight between Brandon Vera and Arjan Bhullar.
After that ONE: ‘Empower’ is set for May 28th and the all female card will feature the quarter finals of the atomweight Grand Prix and a strawweight title fight. The schedule for the rest of the year has yet to be released.
