"A trilogy for the belt" - John Lineker will shift attention to Fabricio Andrade rubber match if dream Rodtang fight falls through
John Lineker is enjoying his explosive run in Muay Thai, but recapturing his MMA world title remains a matter close to his heart.
'Hands of Stone' made it back-to-back knockouts in as many appearances in "The Art of Eight Limbs" at ONE Fight Night 25 after debuting in the sport in style against Asa Ten Pow at ONE 168: Denver last month.
This time, the Brazilian brawler needed only 134 seconds to stop tough-as-nails Alexey Balyko inside Bangkok's majestic Lumpinee Stadium on Oct. 4.
Now. his talks about a potential super fight with Rodtang Jitmuangnon have gained traction — with the longtime ONE flyweight Muay Thai world champion already responding to the Brazilian's callout.
However, John Lineker has only one name in mind should a dream fight with 'The Iron Man' flies out of the window.
He told Nick Atkin:
"If that [fight with Rodtang] doesn't happen, I'm happy to go back to MMA and maybe a trilogy for the belt again."
Fabricio Andrade captured the ONE bantamweight MMA world title from Lineker with a fourth-round TKO win inside the Mecca of Muay Thai in February last year.
Their first encounter four months prior to their rematch ended in a no-contest after 'Wonder Boy' accidentally landed a low blow.
Watch the full interview here:
Rodtang all praise for John Lineker's raw KO power
Though Rodtang is rather confident in his chances if he were to be locked in for a scrap alongside John Lineker, the Thai megastar knows he cannot sleep on the crushing power of the Brazilian's 'Hands of Stone.'
In a recent interview with ONE Championship, The Iron Man jokingly suggested that the former bantamweight MMA king could even take out an animal with his trademark tool:
"His punches are deadly. He can kill a buffalo with his punch."
North American fans who missed Lineker's emphatic display at ONE Fight Night 25 can watch the entire card via replay for free with an active Amazon Prime Video subscription.