ONE Championship’s heavyweight MMA champion Brandon Vera will make his return on May 15th, fighting Arjan Bhullar in the main event of a card titled “Dangal.” The event, which was revealed during the promotion’s “ONE on TNT 4” broadcast on Wednesday, is set to happen at the Singapore Indoor Stadium in Singapore.
It is not known currently if the May 15th date is a live broadcast or if the fights will be taped beforehand.
A fight between Vera and Bhullar was first attempted in 2020, although it was cancelled after the COVID-19 pandemic forced ONE Championship to put a pause on events.
Bhullar will be returning after winning his ONE debut in 2019, defeating Mauro Cerilli via decision. The bout was Bhullar’s first after wrapping up a four-fight run in the UFC.
Vera has been ONE’s heavyweight champ since 2015, when he defeated Paul Cheng to earn the then-vacant belt. He has defended the belt twice since then, scoring finish wins over Mauro Cerilli and Hideki Sekine.
Vera has not competed in the heavyweight division since 2018. His last appearance was in 2019, where he lost a fight at the 225-pound weight class against Aung La N Sang.
Undefeated Phogat To Fight Nguyen
Ritu Phogat will look to extend her undefeated four-fight record when fighting Bi Nguyen on the card.
Phogat is now double-booked, as the 26-year-old is expected to compete in the opening round of ONE’s Atomweight Grand Prix later in May. The prospect has won four fights since turning pro in 2019. Her last performance was in late 2020, where he stopped Jomary Torres within a round with strikes.
Nguyen will attempt to break a three-fight losing streak in MMA. The ONE veteran lost her last bout, not being favoured on scorecards against Jihin Radzuan last year.
Mangat Makes Return Against Streaking Mainam
Roshan Mainam has the chance to score his fourth consecutive win in ONE when fighting Gary Mangat on the card. Mainam has put on impressive peformances since joining the promotion in 2019, having scored three submission wins.
The fight will see Mangat return to action after not competing in 2020. The bantamweight had his momentum stopped in late 2019, as his two-fight win streak in ONE was broken by promotional vet Reece McLaren.
Full Lineup:
Three bouts have been reported for ONE’s May 15th card currently. Here is how the lineup looks.
Bout 3: Brandon Vera (16-8) vs. Arjan Bhullar (10-1) (ONE MMA Heavyweight Championship) (265 lbs)
Bout 2: Bi Nguyen (5-6) vs. Ritu Phogat (4-0) (115 lbs) (MMA Bout)
Bout 1: Gary Mangat (15-3) vs. Roshan Mainam (6-2) (135 lbs) (MMA Bout)
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