"A significant moment of my career" - Fabricio Andrade on why world title tilt vs Kwon Won Il at ONE 170 is a "must win"
Apart from reasserting his mastery over No.3-ranked divisional contender Kwon Won Il, reigning ONE bantamweight MMA king Fabricio Andrade will also carry another vital reason to win his upcoming world title match against him on Jan. 24 at ONE 170.
Andrade looks to secure the first-ever successful defense of his 26-pound golden belt in front of the sold-out Impact Arena in Bangkok, Thailand.
Furthermore, he pointed out the importance of winning in a comeback fight.
'Wonder Boy' discussed these in a recent exclusive interview with Sportskeeda MMA by saying:
"It's very important for me. A significant moment for my career because it is my first world title defense. And it's also my comeback fight. I think this is a must-win for me. I have to get the win in this fight."
The Brazilian MMA star handed 'Pretty Boy' a first-round knockout loss via a vicious liver kick in their first meeting in June 2022 at ONE 158 to take the lead in their head-to-head score
Fabricio Andrade claps back at Kwon Won Il and reminds him of the result of the first match
Kwon has experienced a tremendous resurgence in the promotion following that forgettable loss to Fabricio Andrade by winning his next three fights via TKO finishes.
These triumphs have allowed the Extreme Combat and P-Boy representative to gain confidence in talking smack against Fabricio Andrade.
But the Evolve MMA and Tiger Muay Thai representative finally had enough and clapped back at him.
In the same interview with Sportskeeda MMA, Andrade said that Kwon should focus solely on his preparation instead of doing online trash talk.
Furthermore, he reminded him of his fate the last time they fought, by saying:
"Remember, I already knocked you out one time. You should be worried about the fight instead of talking s**t on the internet. Like I said, I've already put him to sleep once, and I'm coming to do that again. So he better worry about the training camp and not talking s**t on the internet."
ONE 170 will be available via watch.onefc.com. The exciting event will take place on Jan. 24 inside the Impact Arena in Bangkok, Thailand.