Adriano Moraes says he’s used to fighters calling him out

Former ONE flyweight world champion Adriano Moraes is not at all surprised that a lot of athletes want a piece of him inside the circle.

Speaking to ONE Championship in an interview, 'Mikinho' said with all he has accomplished in mixed martial arts, he is a “dream” opponent for many athletes to test their skills against.

Adriano Moraes was reacting to a recent callout directed at him by Indonesian wrestling champion Eko Roni Saputra. The Brazilian fighter said:

“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.”

Adriano Moraes is set to make his return to action on May 5 at ONE Fight Night 10 on Prime Video where he looks to take back the flyweight belt from reigning world champion Demetrious Johnson in a trilogy fight.

The event is the first-ever live on-ground event of ONE in the United States, happening at 1stBank Center in Broomfield, Colorado.

Adriano Moraes lost the flyweight gold to Johnson last August by knockout in the fourth round. Prior to the loss, he had two successful title defenses in his third turn as champion.

Meanwhile, Saputra, who called out Moraes, is seeing action at ONE Fight Night 7 on February 24 in Bangkok against Filipino flyweight Danny Kingad.

All of ONE Championship’s Amazon shows are aired live and for free to all Prime Video subscribers in North America.

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Adriano Moraes elated about ONE Championship’s growth into a martial arts powerhouse

One of the long-tenured fighters in ONE Championship, Brazilian fighter Adriano Moraes is excited and proud to see the promotion grow significantly throughout the years.

'Mikinho', in particular, underscored ONE’s expanded offering beyond mixed martial arts now and how the group is penetrating new and bigger markets, making it one of the top martial arts promotions out there.

Adriano Moraes told SCMP MMA in an interview:

“Today you have a lot of disciplines, a lot of new fighters. The organization is getting bigger and bigger. A lot of things that were just a dream are coming true. Yes, I want to be busy. Right now, I’m really focused on my trilogy match. Our U.S. debut, I’m really excited. But as a fighter and athlete, I really want to be busy and fight more."

Watch the full interview below:

Since offering mostly MMA fights a decade ago, ONE has steadily added other disciplines, including kickboxing, Muay Thai, and, more recently, submission grappling. The move has received a lot of success and has gained a lot of following.

ONE is also set to hold its first-ever on-ground live event in the United States on May 5 at ONE Fight Night 10 on Prime Video, where Andrade will be featured in the headlining fight against reigning flyweight world champion Demetrious Johnson.

Moraes made his promotional debut in 2013 and has become one of the most consistent top fighters in the division since, even holding the world title in the division three times.