Kevin Belingon’s keys to victory against Kwon Won Il

Kevin Belingon will be hoping to earn his 21st career win against South Korean fighter Kwon 'Pretty Boy' Won Il when the pair meet at ONE: Winter Warriors II, a pre-recorded event that premieres on Friday, December 17.

Belingon has found victories hard to come by since defeating longtime divisional king Bibiano 'The Flash' Fernandes to unify the ONE bantamweight world title in 2018.

He suffered a disqualification-loss in their rematch in March 2019 after landing a series of illegal elbows to the back of Fernandes' head. He was then submitted by the Brazilian when they met again seven months later.

Things went from bad to worse for the Filipino fighter in October 2020. Ranked No.1 in the bantamweight division at the time, Kevin Belingon suffered his first knockout loss at the hands of John Lineker.

The Team Lakay exponent started off well against the Brazilian slugger. However, when Lineker started connecting with his huge combinations, Kevin Belingon clearly was no match for Lineker. The Brazilian eventually knocked him out at 1:16 of the second round.

However, prior to these losses, Kevin Belingon was on a seven-match winning stretch, which included victories against Muin Gafurov, Toni Tauru, Kevin Chung and Martin Nguyen.

'The Silencer' will be desperate to recapture that form when he takes on Kwon Won Il. Ahead of his battle, we take a look at five keys to victory for Kevin Belingon.

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#5. Kevin Belingon must eliminate Kwon’s feet with chopping leg kicks

Good footwork means good balance and a solid center of gravity allows a fighter to load up for that money shot or a bucket load of strikes when they get the chance.

Kwon’s wide taekwondo-style stance has done the trick for him so far in his burgeoning career. It has allowed him to develop crunching power from his right hand against every opponent he has faced inside the ONE Circle.

Kevin Belingon must focus on disrupting his opponent's rhythm and balance with his stinging leg kicks. If he can hurt ‘Pretty Boy’ with these early on, it could take a lot of venom out of Kwon’s punches and slow him down, which would make it easier for the wushu specialist to move in and start utilizing his lightning-fast combinations.

#4. Surprising ‘Pretty Boy’ with strikes

One of Kevin Belingon’s greatest strengths is his sheer agility, be it with his hands, feet, or overall movement.

He has caught a lot of fighters off guard with his pace. As a bantamweight athlete, Kevin Belingon moves like a strawweight athlete in terms of speed. It has troubled all of his opponents in the past.

Even bantamweight kingpin Bibiano Fernandes struggled to cope with the Filipino’s speed in a couple of their meetings.

In his World Title victory over ‘The Flash,' he unleashed two consecutive spinning back kicks, one aimed at the midsection and the other targeted at the head, and both connected.

Kevin Belingon’s spinning kick also took out Andrew Leone when they met in April 2018. Kwon has never faced an opponent who moves as fast as ‘The Silencer,' so it will be interesting to see how he keeps up with the pace and voluminous combinations of the 34-year-old Team Lakay star.

Kwon Won Il loves fighting in the pocket, hoping to connect with his right hand as always. However, it has also left him exposed a couple of times in his lossess against Koyomi Matsushima, Shoko Sato and Masakazu Imanari.

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#3. Kevin Belingon must time his strikes and connect with power

If Kevin Belingon can sort out Kwon’s legs or tire him out with his movement, he may be able to bring home the victory by timing his strikes and hitting with power.

Kevin Belingon packs a lot of punches in his fists, more so in his trademark leg kicks. Although his resume isn't stacked with knockouts, ‘The Silencer’ does pack a lot of power in his kicks, knees, elbows, and punches, especially his right hand.

That proved to be the pivotal tool when he earned the fastest knockout of his career against Reece McLaren in August 2017. Kevin Belingon used his opponent's aggression against him in that match and countered the Australian's left hook with a picture-perfect right that instantly floored his foe.

Kwon's trademark right may allow the Filipino an opportunity to counter in the same way, with, perhaps, a similar result.

#2. Taking Kwon to the canvas

If all else fails, one of the best ways for Kevin Belingon to assert his dominance in this match will be on the canvas.

Kwon doesn't possess much grappling knowledge, while ‘The Silencer’ has significantly improved his jiu-jitsu and wrestling at Team Lakay.

He has come a long way since losing to heel-hook master Masakazu Imanari in his ONE debut in March 2012. The Filipino even managed to escape a couple of submission attempts from Brazilian jiu-jitsu expert Fernandes during their second and fourth bouts.

Kevin Belingon could punish the South Korean with heavy ground-and-pound from mount if the fight ends up on the ground. Should that fall short, he could also move into side control, where he can lock in a variety of submissions, such as an armbar or a kimura.

Before his arrival in ONE, Kevin Belingon had submitted three of his nine opponents inside the first round. Each of those submission wins came from different attempts - rear-naked choke, armbar and kimura.

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#1. Kevin Belingon's main key is to avoid overcommitting in attacks

Kevin Belingon’s main concern against ‘Pretty Boy’ should be his opponent’s right hand. The Filipino warrior must avoid it at all costs if he wants to leave the Circle with a much-needed win.

Kwon will be loading up his money shot from the opening bell, so Kevin Belingon must ensure not to overcommit when he advances.

The South Korean enters this battle with a huge reach advantage, but the Baguio City-based athlete is intelligent when he picks apart a lankier opponent.

Martin Nguyen had 10 centimeters on him when they met for the interim bantamweight world title in July 2018, but 'The Silencer' repeatedly entered his foe's pocket, threw a fast strike and exited with spinning back fists or kicks. In the end, this helped sway the judges in his favor and he claimed a unanimous decision victory.

The key for Kevin Belingon to achieve a similar result against 'Pretty Boy' at ONE: Winter Warriors II could be the same.

Should he come out of this contest victorious, Kevin Belingon can target a rematch against Lineker or a fifth showdown against his longtime rival Fernandes.