By Thinesh John
In combat sports, the members of the Gracie family need no introductions, because of their successes in various combat sport competitions including Mixed Martial Arts and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.
And as ONE Fighting Championship heads to Manilla, Philippines for the first time, the Singapore-based promotion has added 3 fighters bearing the famed ‘Gracie’ sir-name to their star-studded fight card. With Gregor Gracie set to take on reigning URCC Light Heavyweight Champion Nicholas Mann, opponents for both Rolles and Igor Gracie were also confirmed earlier today.
Rolles Gracie, a fighter with 7 professional bouts under his belt, is set to face Tony Bonello, a KOTC veteran who has 19 professional fights in his grasp. Igor Gracie, on the other hand, is set to face Korean Jung Hwan Cha. Cha has competed primarily in South Korea’s ROAD FC promotion.
The match-ups were first announced by BloodyElbow, which were later confirmed by ONE Fighting Championship through its official Facebook page.
ONE FC 5: Pride of a Nation is set to go down on August 31st, at the Smart Araneta Coliseum situated in Manilla, Philippines. Former UFC Champions Andrei Arlovski and Jens Pulver have already confirmed for the event, along with Asia’s No. 1 fighter Shinya Aoki, and former DREAM Bantamweight and Featherweight titleholder, Bibiano Fernandes.
Rolles Gracie (6-1) last faced Bob Sapp when ONE FC made its way to Jakarta, Indonesia. The former ensured that Sapp had a night to forget, forcing the referee to stop the fight at 1:18s of the 1st round. Rolles will be making his 2nd appearance in the ONE FC cage on August 31st, and is currently riding on a 3-fight winning streak. His opponent, Tony Banello (16-1-1), has held multiple straps in the KOTC promotion, holding wins over the likes of Dan Severn. The 2nd Degree Gracie Jiu-Jitsu Black Belt was 15-0-1, before suffering the 1st setback of his career against Murilo Rua. 14 of the Australian’s 16 wins have come via Submission.
Igor Gracie (5-2), in the meantime, will have his hands full when he makes his promotional debut on August 31st. The 32-year-old has been on a tear lately with a 4-fight winning streak in his pocket, picking up wins over John Salgado and Manelo Morales. The Brazilian is 4-1 in his past 5 fights, with the lone setback coming against UFC veteran Vagner Rocha at Bellator 11. Jung Hwan Cha (8-6-1), on the other hand, is a veteran with 15 fights and has faced the likes of Australian George Sotiropoulos and Ryo Chonan. The Korean is 3-2 in his past 5 fights.
ONE Fighting Championship will be announcing more match-ups in the near future so do check back regularly, here on MMASucka.com, for the latest news and fight announcements.
Here is the updated card for ONE FC 5: Pride of a Nation:
• Bibiano Fernandes vs. Gustavo Falciroli
• Andrei Arlovski vs. Soa Palelei
• Jens Pulver vs. Eric Kelly
• Gregor Gracie vs. Nicholas Mann
• Rolles Gracie vs. Tony Banello
• Phil Baroni vs. Rodrigo Ribeiro
• Igor Gracie vs. Jung Hwan Cha
