Reug Reug Injured In Car Accident, Out Of Heavyweight World Title Rematch With Anatoly Malykhin At ONE 173
Reigning ONE Heavyweight MMA World Champion “Reug Reug” Oumar Kane has been forced to withdraw from his highly anticipated rematch against two-division MMA king Anatoly “Sladkiy” Malykhin at ONE 173: Superbon vs. Noiri.
The 33-year-old Senegalese superstar was involved in a serious car accident in the United Arab Emirates and will be unable to compete inside Tokyo’s Ariake Arena on Sunday, November 16.
The extent of his injuries has not been disclosed, but the setback marks a devastating blow for the Senegalese superstar, who was preparing to defend his heavyweight crown for the first time in front of a massive Japanese crowd.
Kane challenged then-undefeated titleholder Malykhin for the ONE Heavyweight MMA World Championship in the main event of ONE 169, using his improved striking and grappling to beat the 37-year-old via split decision after an entertaining five-round war.
With the triumph, “Reug Reug” became Africa’s first ONE World Champion and extended his winning streak to five. The mighty Russian, meanwhile, suffered his first career defeat, which saw his unblemished slate move to 14-1.
Even though this World Title rematch is no longer on the star-studded card, ONE 173 still features 17 high-octane matchups across MMA, Muay Thai, kickboxing, and submission grappling.
There will be four additional World Title matchups before divisional king Superbon and interim titleholder Masaaki Noiri lock horns in a ONE Featherweight Kickboxing World Championship unification contest in the main event.
Rodtang “The Iron Man” Jitmuangnon meets striking icon Nong-O Hama in an all-Thai classic for the vacant ONE Flyweight Muay Thai World Championship. Also, a new kingpin will be crowned in Tokyo when Japan’s Nadaka Yoshinari goes toe-to-toe with Thai destroyer Numsurin Chor Ketwina for the inaugural ONE Atomweight Muay Thai World Title.
Elsewhere, double-champ Christian “The Warrior” Lee puts his ONE Lightweight MMA World Title on the line when he runs it back with undefeated Turkish standout Alibeg Rasulov.
Lastly, ONE Strawweight MMA World Champion Joshua “The Passion” Pacio moves up a division to tango with hometown hero Yuya “Little Piranha” Wakamatsu for the latter’s ONE Flyweight MMA World Championship.
Stay tuned to onefc.com for more news about ONE 173: Superbon vs. Noiri.
