Adriano Moraes Picks Danny Kingad To Beat Eko Roni Saputra In Key Flyweight Clash At ONE Fight Night 7

Adriano Moraes defends the ONE Flyweight World Title against Yuya Wakamatsu at ONE X

Danny Kingad and Eko Roni Saputra are poised to throw down in an exciting flyweight MMA tilt this Friday, February 24, and the most dominant fighter in the division’s history expects an entertaining battle.

Above all, eight-time ONE Flyweight World Champion and current #1 contender Adriano Moraes thinks the two competitors will showcase an exciting clash of styles at ONE Fight Night 7: Lineker vs. Andrade II on Prime Video.

Both Kingad and Saputra have worked hard to round out their mixed martial arts games, but “Mikinho” thinks their contest will come down to who can dictate where the action takes place.

“The King” is an elite striker who trains out of Team Lakay, while Saputra comes from a decorated wrestling background in Indonesia.

With that in mind, Moraes expects both men to lean on their biggest strengths at Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand.

He said:

“It’s going to be another great fight in this division. This division is very strong, with very tough athletes. 

“Danny Kingad has already been a contender and has been improving his grappling game a lot. I believe it will be a very busy fight, with Danny Kingad trying to keep the fight standing and Eko Roni Saputra trying to put Kingad down since his background is wrestling.”

At 27 years old, #3-ranked Kingad is already a stalwart of the division, with a 10-3 slate in ONE and his only defeats coming to current or former ONE Flyweight World Champions.

The Filipino lost via submission when he challenged Moraes for the flyweight gold back in 2017, but the Brazilian superstar thinks his former foe’s game has improved massively – and he sees him as the favorite against Saputra.

“Mikinho” explained:

“Danny Kingad is a young fighter who has been evolving a lot. He’s been doing good fights and has already beaten very tough opponents. 

“As for Saputra, I don’t know much about him. I just know that his background is wrestling and that he likes to submit his opponents. But I believe Danny Kingad will win this fight on points or by technical knockout.”

‘I’ll Take My Name Out Of His Mouth’ – Moraes Would Love To Silence Saputra In The Circle

Adriano Moraes has been mentioned in recent interviews by Eko Roni Saputra, who believes he was disrespected by the former flyweight king.

Saputra is currently riding an incredible streak of seven first-round finishes, but he also claims that Moraes made a disparaging comment on social media about his victory over Liu Peng Shuai – and then later deleted it.

While “Mikinho” denies the claim, he’s more focused on a potential showdown in the Circle.

The longtime star knows that Saputra is hoping to beat Kingad, crash the rankings, and earn a head-to-head matchup – and he would be happy to let his actions do the talking if such a matchup ever takes place.

Moraes added:

“As I was the most dominant champion in the division and have a successful career in ONE Championship. All athletes dream of fighting me. I’m already used to this kind of situation. But my focus is on my career and my life.

“I never wrote anything. He’s pushing it to move up in the rankings. I hope he wins and maybe we’ll face each other in the future. Then I’m going to break his face so he can stop lying. I’ll take my name out of his mouth. If ONE Championship wants that, it will be an honor to beat him.”

More in News

Hannah Brady Natalia Diachkova ONE Friday Fights 32 40
Masaaki Noiri
Hiroki Akimoto makes his way to the Circle at ONE 163
Thongpoon PK Saenchai Timur Chuikov ONE Fight Night 19 41
Sean Climaco
Ben Tynan Duke Didier ONE Fight Night 21 29
Suriyanlek Por Yenying Tomyamkoong Bhumjaithai ONE Friday Fights 41 23
Eko Roni Saputra Hu Yong ONE Fight Night 15 28
Zakaria El Jamari
Yamin PK Saenchai Joachim Ouraghi ONE Friday Fights 59 8
Yamin Joachim Ouraghi
Adrian Lee