WATCH: 'Reug Reug' presents his gold as Senegal’s guest of honor ahead of AFCON qualification match against Burundi
Oumar 'Reug Reug' Kane's conquest of the ONE heavyweight MMA world title continues to be celebrated in Senegal. The most recent celebration took place at the football pitch ahead of the Senegalese national team's Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualifying match against Burundi.
The newly minted ONE world champion presented his gold strap to the crowd at the Abdoulaye Wade Stadium. He was accompanied by Senegal captain Lakidou Koulibaly and was also greeted by the rest of the team. His presence proved to be a lucky charm, as Senegal went on to defeat Burundi, 2-0.
The Senegalese Football Federation shared a video clip of 'Reug Reug' taking the pitch to be acknowledged by the crowd and national team on its official Instagram account.
Check out the post below:
'Reug Reug' was among the latest the additions to ONE Championship's roster of world champions after he defeated erstwhile heavyweight king Anatoly Malykhin of Russia by split decision at ONE 169 on Nov. 8 at the Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand.
'Reug Reug' banked on a solid start to set the pace in the contest against Malykhin. He encountered some trouble in the later rounds as 'Sladkiy' found his groove, but still he managed to hold on and grind out the split decision win.
The full replay of ONE 169 is available on demand to Prime Video subscribers in the United States and Canada.
Cameroonian Francis Ngannou hails 'Reug Reug's' win as big for Africa
The Senegalese people are not the only ones celebrating the championship conquest of Oumar 'Reug Reug' Kane, as fighters from other parts of Africa hailed it as a big win for the region. Among them was Cameroonian MMA superstar Francis Ngannou, who took to social media to give props to the new ONE world champion.
"The Predator' took to Instagram to share a photo of him and the Senegalese champion in a meet-up of top African fighters in Dubai following the title-clinching win of 'Reug Reug' at ONE 169 on Nov. 8. He captioned his post with:
"Last night, Dubai was filled with CHAMPIONS from the Motherland, Africa!"
Check out the post below:
With his title conquest at ONE 169, 'Reug Reug' made history by becoming the first African-born fighter to become a ONE world champion.