Shinya Aoki has been the most dominant lightweights in Asia for the better part of a decade, but the reigning ONE FC lightweight champion and former Dream, Shooto and WAMMA champion is set for a new challenge: campaigning at 145 pounds. Talk of a possible drop down in weight for Aoki has been intensifying ever since his title victory over Kotetsu Boku . He made the 155-pound limit so easily for that fight that both him and his team stated that he would be likely to compete at featherweight in the future. The final stage in the preparatory process took place last weekend with Aoki completing a successful test cut. He posted a photo of himself on Facebook stepping on the scales at 65.6 kg along with a message saying that it had been “no problem.” The most obvious fight for the Japanese legend would be against reigning ONE FC featherweight champion Koji Oishi , who won the belt by beating Honorio Banario in Manila last month. Aoki, however, also holds the lightweight strap, which could complicate any prospective featherweight match-up, as ONE FC matchmaker Matt Hume might be reluctant to allow one fighter to hold two belts concurrently. If he remains at 155 pounds, there are a number of potential contenders coming through the ONE FC ranks including Kamal Shalorus , Caros Fodor and Lowen Tynanes, while the top-ranked fighters in the featherweight division at present are Oishi, Banario, Eric Kelly, and Bae Young Kwon. The decision to move down in weight was made by Aoki and the training team at Evolve MMA in Singapore, which has a proven track record of helping its fighters make weight drops
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One FC Lightweight Champion Shinya Aoki Set for a Drop to Featherweight – MMA Weekly