"Who's gonna be the next?" - Adriano Moraes believes he has earned a spot in bout for vacant flyweight MMA gold

Top-ranked ONE flyweight MMA competitor Adriano Moraes is convinced his second-round submission of Danny Kingad at ONE 169: Malykhin vs. 'Reug Reug' this past Friday, Nov. 8, has secured his spot to fight for the currently vacant 135-pound MMA crown.

'Mikinho' made his case in an interview with the Bangkok Post:

"I did my homework. I won the fight, so I think I'm in the finals for this vacant belt. I saw some contenders in the division have their fights coming up, so let's watch these fights and see who's gonna be the next."

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Posting a second submission victory over Kingad inside the legendary Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand was a much-needed return to form for Moraes. It came after he suffered back-to-back losses to MMA great Demetrious Johnson in August 2022 and May 2023.

Moraes' first defeat to 'Mighty Mouse' was memorable for all the wrong reasons. It was his first-ever knockout loss under the ONE banner, and he also dropped the ONE flyweight MMA world championship.

But following the American legend's retirement from MMA at ONE 168: Denver this past September inside the Ball Arena, Moraes is keen to reclaim 26 pounds of flyweight MMA gold.

Adriano Moraes predicted Danny Kingad's strategy for ONE 169

Adriano Moraes knew Danny Kingad was hungry to exact his revenge for their November 2017 encounter heading into their ONE 169 rematch. However, Moraes was prepared for everything 'The King' threw at him.

Speaking with ONE ahead of ONE 169, the 36-year-old said:

"I'm sure he's been working on his ground game a lot. But I believe that the ground game is his weak point, and the strongest part of my game is jiu-jitsu, without a doubt."

Fans in the United States and Canada with an active Prime Video subscription can rewatch ONE 169 on demand.