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
BAD MMA Trending Cloud
UFC • Bellator • news • Conor Mcgregor • PFL • Jon Jones • Daniel Cormier • videos • Dustin Poirier • Khabib Nurmagomedov • Dana White • Francis Ngannou • Jorge Masvidal • featured • Nate Diaz • WSOF • Anderson Silva • Max Holloway • Ronda Rousey • Amanda Nunes • Donald Cerrone • Michael Bisping • Michael Chandler • Tony Ferguson • Kamaru Usman • islam makhachev • Alex Pereira • jake paul • Alexander Volkanovski • Demetrious Johnson • Charles Oliveira • Henry Cejudo • Jose Aldo • Aljamain Sterling • One Championship • sean o'malley • Derrick Lewis • Stipe Miocic • Tyron Woodley • Georges St Pierre
- MMA News (112661)
- Michael Chandler feels ‘destined for UFC gold’; lists Arman Tsarukyan, Paddy Pimblett, others for UFC return
- Daniel Cormier: Alex Pereira taking a dangerous risk by cornering Sean Strickland at UFC 312
- Shara Magomedov thinks Islam Makhachev can be a double champ at lightweight and middleweight
- Dana White lashes out at ‘dumbest human being’ Bryce Mitchell
- Jake Paul and Logan Paul announce reality show instead of boxing match
- Commentator John Gooden signs new UFC contract with ‘certain pledges’
- Power Slap 11 Post-Fight Press Conference
- Dana White: UFC ‘beyond disgusted’ by Bryce Mitchell’s pro-Hitler rant – but no punishment
- Alex Pereira says he’d be a ‘bigger achievement’ for Jon Jones than Tom Aspinall
- UFC’s Bryce Mitchell hits new low with ‘Hitler was a good guy’ homophobic diatribe | Opinion