ONE Championship returns to the Singapore Indoor Stadium on Friday with ONE 159: De Ridder vs. Bigdash, but the lead card got a little shakeup at the start of fight week.
Per the promotion, two scheduled bouts have fallen off the card. First, Jessa Khan vs. Amanda Alequin has been removed after Alequin suffered an undisclosed medical issue. Heavyweight slugfest Anderson Silva vs. Mikhail Jamal Abdul-Latif was also removed from the bill following an injury to Abdul-Latif.
But ONE was quick to add a cracking Muay Thai affair with the addition of Smokin’ Jo Nattawut vs. Jamal Yusupov.
Nattawut, who has not dropped a Muay Thai contest in ONE, will get a chance at the #5-ranked contender in the division.
Yusupov has been electric since joining the promotion. He will look to add another legendary name to his list after defeating the likes of Yodsanklai Fairtex and Samy Sana on the global stage. The Russian will want another high-profile victory to earn a shot at the ONE Featherweight Muay Thai World Championship.
The high-stakes featherweight contest will now headline the lead card.
The organization announced one additional change on Monday.
Islam Murtazaev was forced to withdraw from his encounter with Sinsamut Klinmee due to a family emergency, and he will be replaced by Liam Nolan.
Nolan is riding a four-bout win streak into the Circle against the Thai athlete who stunned the world with his knockout over Nieky Holzken earlier this year.
The matchup is a great opportunity for the Brit to continue his win streak and force his way into the lightweight spotlight or for Sinsamut to follow up his remarkable victory over Holzken with another dazzling showcase.
It should be a guaranteed barnburner in the lightweight Muay Thai division.
ONE 159 airs live and free on watch.onefc.com at 6:30 a.m. EST/3:30 a.m. PST on Friday, July 22.