Belingon Vs. Lineker To Headline ONE: INSIDE THE MATRIX III

Two of the bantamweight division’s most lethal knockout artists are ready to stand and trade heavy leather.

On Friday, 13 November, former ONE Bantamweight World Champion and #1-ranked contender Kevin “The Silencer” Belingon will square off against the division’s #5-ranked contender John “Hands Of Stone” Lineker in the main event of ONE: INSIDE THE MATRIX III, which was previously recorded at the Singapore Indoor Stadium.

Belingon, who owns the record for most KOs in ONE Championship’s bantamweight history at six, is eager to recapture the gold he previously lost.

After knocking out the likes of Reece “Lightning” McLaren and Andrew Leone, the 33-year-old Filipino beat former featherweight king Martin “The Situ-Asian” Nguyen to win the ONE Interim Bantamweight World Title in July 2018.

Four months later, “The Silencer” defeated the division’s longtime titleholder, Bibiano “The Flash” Fernandes, to become the undisputed ONE Bantamweight World Champion.

However, the Filipino experienced some misfortune last year. First, he was disqualified in his March 2019 trilogy bout with Fernandes due to illegal elbows and consequently surrendered the belt. Then, “The Silencer” was submitted in their follow-up fight in October 2019.

Now, Belingon wants to start the year off right, earn some redemption, claim the 21st victory of his career, and kick-start his quest back to the gold.

However, that will be immensely difficult against “Hands Of Stone.”

Lineker, who owns a 32-9 professional record, burst onto the global stage in October 2019. That evening in Jakarta, Indonesia, he used his powerful striking to rip through the ultra-tough Muin “Tajik” Gafurov and earn a unanimous decision win.

The 30-year-old Brazilian will be looking to follow up that explosive ONE debut with a highlight-reel victory and leapfrog Belingon in ONE’s Athlete Rankings.

ONE: INSIDE THE MATRIX III will also see Belingon’s Team Lakay stablemate, former ONE Flyweight World Champion Geje “Gravity” Eustaquio, make his long-awaited return to action.

The last time fans saw Eustaquio on the global stage was back in November 2019 when he knocked out longtime rival Toni “Dynamite” Tauru with a spinning back kick to the liver.

In the co-main event on Friday night, the Filipino will meet “Running Man” Song Min Jong, a South Korean Mixed Martial Arts Champion who is riding a four-bout winning streak.

Additionally, ONE: INSIDE THE MATRIX III will feature Pancrase Champion Hiroyuki “Japanese Beast” Tetsuka, Shooto Champion Hiroba Minowa, two-time ADCC World Champion Yuri Simoes, and #5-ranked strawweight contender Lito “Thunder Kid” Adiwang.

Check below for the entire lineup.

Full Card For ONE: INSIDE THE MATRIX III

• Kevin Belingon vs. John Lineker (mixed martial arts – bantamweight)
• Geje Eustaquio vs. Song Min Jong (mixed martial arts – 64-kilogram catch weight)
• Hiroyuki Tetsuka vs. Murad Ramazanov (mixed martial arts – welterweight)
• Fan Rong vs. Yuri Simoes (mixed martial arts – middleweight)
• Lito Adiwang vs. Hiroba Minowa (mixed martial arts – strawweight)

Read more: ONE: INSIDE THE MATRIX II – Full Results And Highlights For Abbasov Vs. Nakashima