On August 4, Chingiz Allazov will get a chance to settle the score with Marat Grigorian.
ONE Championship returns to Prime Video and U.S. primetime with one of the best kickboxing bouts of the year. The two pound-for-pound greats will collide for the ONE Featherweight Kickboxing World Championship in the evening’s main event.
Allazov rose to the top of ONE’s featherweight division by winning the ONE Featherweight Kickboxing World Grand Prix. He then knocked out Superbon Singha Mawynn to claim the gold. Although the win brought him a new wave of fans, the 30-year-old got right back in the gym to continue improving.
“I knew in my mind I was number one before Superbon,” Allazov told ONE. “But I was like, ‘Okay, we will do this in the real world and let people see that I am number one.’ The next morning [after the win], we had training with my coach. In the first round, I made one mistake. But we saw it, and we went to train the next day. We train every day. I say, ‘Coach, please help me beat my next opponent.'”
The chance to battle against Grigorian was an easy call for “Chinga.” Allazov had previously met the Armenian nine years ago. Nearly a decade later, the two will run it back as two of the best strikers in the world.
“I like this fight,” Allazov said. “I’ve been waiting for this day. ONE offered me three opponents for my first defense, and I picked Grigorian. We fought 10 years ago. The first time was a no-contest. The second fight, I lost. After that, me and Marat moved up in the sport. We won tournaments. We won all the events. We won all the fights. I became number one in ONE Championship, the top fighter in my category, and my weight class is the best in the world.”
Motivated to even the series against Grigorian, “Chinga” has looked more closely at his challenger’s game. Even though the #2-ranked featherweight contender is among the elite, Allazov is not that impressed with his skills. The division’s new king expects to hold an advantage regarding the technical aspect and will try to use that to stop the forward pressure of his Armenian foe.
“For me, Marat is not technical,” Allazov stated. He is the same as Superbon. He is a strong fighter. He likes to go forward. He’s an aggressive fighter. But he doesn’t have good technique. His real power is closing the distance.”
Allazov rose to the top of the kickboxing division with impressive knockouts. However, when the bell rings inside Lumpinee Boxing Stadium on August 4, he will not be eyeing a quick knockout. Allazov is preparing for an all-out war and will wait for his opportunity should it present itself.
“I have many plans – to work my speed, move, and go forward and backward,” Allazov said. “We have a game plan for this fight. In my fights, I never plan for a knockout. I fight, and if I see a mistake, I punch. I score a knockout. Maybe Marat will make a mistake, and I can knock him out. But my game plan is not the knockout. My game plan is to fight clever. My mind is ready, and my body is ready.”
ONE Fight Night 13 will air live on Friday, August 4, on Prime Video. The action will begin at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT. The event is free for all U.S. and Canadian Prime Video subscribers.
