Ok Rae Yoon banking on his striking to undo Alibeg Rasulov's 'Dagestan wrestling': "I'm going to do my best"
Ok Rae Yoon will try to avoid any ground game exchanges when he faces Alibeg Rasulov at ONE Fight Night 23.
The former ONE lightweight MMA world champion meets the Turkish debutant inside the Lumpinee Boxing Stadium on Friday, July 5, and he already knows his opposite number will resort to his bread and butter to push him into trouble.
However, the South Korean slugger vows to not dance to his foe's rhythm, as he told ONE Championship recently:
"I think we both are going to do what we are good at. Alibeg is going to bring his Dagestan wrestling to try and take me down. I'm going to do my best to not get taken down and hit him with good shots."
If the 33-year-old can live up to his word, things could get a bit messy for Rasulov, who typically excels when the fight hits the canvas.
The undefeated warrior brings a world-class grappling game, but his striking and chin will be tested to the fullest against someone of Ok's caliber.
Ok Rae Yoon has already registered four unanimous decision wins on the global stage via his heavy stand-up game, and you can be sure as hell that he'll turn up in typical fashion to become the first man to hand Rasulov a loss on his way to the interim lightweight crown that will be on the line at ONE Fight Night 23.
Ok Rae Yoon shares his winning formula against Rasulov
During the same exchange with the promotion ahead of ONE Fight Night 23, the former ONE lightweight MMA world title offered an insight into a potential winning strategy over the debuting Turkish phenom.
Ok Rae Yoon said:
"If he comes in for the takedown, I'll make sure he pays for it with my knees. Then, I'll hit him with my shots and get the KO."
Though the Team Mad athlete has yet to finish any of his fights under the ONE spotlight, the 17-win veteran has four knockouts on his resume. His last came via a flying knee and punch combination in April 2017.
North American fans with an active Amazon Prime Video subscription can catch the entire ONE Fight Night 23 card live in U.S. primetime for free on July 5.