Who is Aori Qileng? Exploring 'Mongolian Murderer' fighter's record, coaching staff, relationship status, and more ahead of Noche UFC 306
This Saturday, Aori Qileng has the opportunity of a lifetime. He will feature on the blockbuster Noche UFC 306 card, marking the promotion's debut at The Sphere. Not only is it a high-profile event, but he is booked to face one of the most talked-about names at bantamweight: Raul Rosas Jr.
However, the circumstances aren't favorable for the 31-year old. The bout is the opening fight on the early prelims, and he is, for all intents and purposes, a layup for Rosas. But Aori is nothing, if not determined, and will almost certainly look to use Noche UFC 306 as a platform to turn his career around.
But what kind of career will Aori be looking to propel to greater heights? What has his UFC run yielded thus far?
Aori Qileng's MMA career explored
Despite his best efforts, Aori Qileng has not enjoyed major MMA success. His career began in the Chinese regional scene, where he spent most of his 9-year tenure in the sport. By the time he signed with the UFC, he was already a veteran of 31 fights, having competed at flyweight, featherweight, and bantamweight.
Moreover, Aori is a former WLF bantamweight champion. However, when he tested the waters of top-level competition, he was humbled in short order. He made his UFC debut on a six-fight win streak with a 23-8 record at the time. Unfortunately, he was handed a loss by Jeff Molina at UFC 261.
Check out 'The Mongolian Murderer's' TKO of Cameron Else:
He went on to fight six more times in the promotion, authoring an unremarkable 3-3 (1) run, with a current record of 25-11 (1) that his teams, Fight Ready and Xin-Du Martial Arts Club, will hope to improve.
Who is Aori Qileng?
There is very little publicly-available information on Aori Qileng's personal life. What is known, though, is that he is 31 years old, having been born on June 25, 1993 in Xilingol, Inner Mongolia, China. He is said to have grown up in a family of herders who lived as nomads.
Herding, however, was not his true calling. Aori pursued martial arts, growing under the tutelage of Sanda master Zhao Xuejun, who has worked with one-time UFC women's strawweight title challenger Yan Xiaonan. As he improved under his coach's training, he found tremendous success as a Sanda practitioner.
At Noche UFC 306 this Saturday, he will hope to use the skills that carried him to multiple Sanda championships to upset bantamweight prospect Raul Rosas Jr.