Fourteen months since his last outing, “Wonder Boy” will make the first defence of the bantamweight MMA gold against No. 3-ranked contender Kwon Won Il at ONE 170 on Friday, January 24, at Impact Arena in Bangkok, Thailand.
With an excellent record in the striking arts, Andrade’s firepower has always been his superior asset. So, while working his way back to full fitness, the Brazilian superstar decided to develop his grappling talents – and the results have been positive.
“Since my last fight was a kickboxing fight, I spent a long time without training grappling. So, after I started training again, I started focusing a lot on jiu-jitsu and wrestling. But I always tried to improve my striking as well,” Andrade revealed.
“I really focused on grappling training, and I’m very happy with my progress. I’m feeling very confident in grappling, just as I do in striking. I believe that in this fight, I’ll be able to show how I’ve evolved as an MMA athlete. I haven’t evolved in a specific area. I’ve evolved my MMA game, and I believe that I’m more complete and have more weapons to use in my fights.”
Andrade and Kwon last met when they were surging contenders at ONE 158 in June 2022. “Wonder Boy’s” talents shone bright that evening, and he finished the South Korean star in just over a minute to earn his first shot at the ONE bantamweight MMA world title.
Two and a half years later, Andrade fails to see any improvements in Kwon’s acumen. According to the 28-year-old, “Pretty Boy” hasn’t evolved, and he plans to take advantage of that by showcasing his own progress.
“What I see in his game is the same as I saw the first time I faced him. He’s a guy who doesn’t know how to use the good wingspan he has. He faces smaller athletes and always moves forward, so he doesn’t have good distance control and doesn’t use his wingspan well,” Andrade said.
“I’m going to finish the fight, no matter what round. I’m going to look for the knockout all the time, and if I have the opportunity, I’m going to knock him out. But if I also have the opportunity to take him down and take this fight to the ground, I’m going to submit him.
“So, my prediction is that I’ll win by submission or knockout. This fight won’t go to the judges’ decision.”
