Kwon Won Il says two-division glory will be next on his list if he takes bantamweight crown from Fabricio Andrade at ONE 170
South Korean knockout artist Kwon Won Il is looking to seize the bantamweight MMA world title in his scheduled fight next month. He then hopes to win another belt and fulfill his goal of becoming a double world champion.
'Pretty Boy' shared this intention of his in an interview with the Anything Goes podcast in line with his title bid and rematch against ONE bantamweight MMA world champion Fabricio Andrade at ONE 170 on Jan. 24, 2025. It is one of three confirmed title fights for the event happening at the Impact Arena in Bangkok, Thailand.
The veteran ONE campaigner said:
"Yeah, you know, if ever that [win world bantamweight world title] happens in the near future that means I'll have so many options. I can defend my belt more, I can go up in weight class."
Check out what he had to say below:
Entering ONE 170, Kwon Won il has won three straight matches, all coming by way of knockout. The winning streak came on the heels of his loss to Andrade in their first encounter in June 2022.
ONE 170 will be aired live and for free in U.S. primetime to North American fans with an active Amazon Prime Video subscription.
Fabricio Andrade preparing for an improved Kwon Won il in rematch
ONE bantamweight MMA world champion Fabricio Andrade is bracing for an improved Kwon Won il in their scheduled rematch at ONE 170 on Jan. 24 in Thailand. However, he's vowed to counter it by showcasing the improvements in his game as well since they first fought two years ago.
He spoke about it in an interview with Sportskeeda MMA, saying:
"[I will showcase] A new and better version for sure. So I think I'm a different version than I was one or two years ago."
In their first showdown at ONE 158 on June 3, 2022, Andrade made short work of Kwon Won il, scoring a first-round knockout which he set up with a solid kick to the body.
Following the win, 'Wonder Boy' went on to claim the vacant bantamweight MMA world title in February 2023.