Aung La N Sang returns to ONE Championship

Aung La N Sang, one of the faces of ONE Championship, will make his return later this month after being away from the promotion for a year. The double champion will defend his Middleweight title on October 30th at ONE: INSIDE THE MATRIX. A total of four Championships will be defended on the night that will mark ONE's return to Singapore.

The announcement was made by ONE Championship Founder, Chairman and CEO, Chatri Sityodtong. Aung La N Sang then shared the fight poster on his Twitter account.

My next @ONEChampionship bout details. pic.twitter.com/EHX5OZOAG4

— Aung LA Nsang (@AungLANsang) October 13, 2020

Aung La N Sang is presently riding a seven-fight win streak, with the last six coming being finishes. Although the Burmese Python is not as explosive as he was a few years back, the double champion is still more than a handful to deal with. Aung La N Sang has to thank his Sanford MMA teammates for this.

Even though the gym doesn't have the glitz and glamour that an American Top Team or Jackson Wink has, N Sang has a plethora of mega-talent in the gym to train with. UFC fighters like Desmond Green, Derek Brunson, Michael Chandler, and Bellator's Steve Mowry, Matt Mitrione and Daniel Straus continue to push him.

The year away from the cage wasn't one that was planned by Aung La N Sung. At first, he needed some time off after going through a gauntlet in the organization. The hiatus was then extended because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Burmese Python is one of the original gangsters of MMA that decided not to look to bring his skills to North America, despite living in South Florida. MMA fighters around the globe know just how deadly he can be. However, his hands will be full on October 30th at ONE: INSIDE THE MATRIX.

What type of challenge awaits Aung La N Sang at ONE: INSIDE THE MATRIX?

Aung La N Sung's opponent at ONE: INSIDE THE MATRIX, Reinier de Ridder, is on a hot streak himself. He's 3-0 in ONE Championship and is still undefeated in his MMA career. The Dutch fighter has seven first round finishes and eight submissions to his name. However, the majority of Ridder's fights before coming to ONE Championship were inside a ring and not a cage.

Aung La N Sang has a distinct speed advantage in this fight, but he still needs to be on his toes. Should The Burmese Python choose to get into a fire fight and try to extend his KO streak to six, he may have to look to pick up a semi quick finish.

However, N Sang knows what the challenger brings to the table. He recently said:

"He finds a way to win. Every time I think he's going to have trouble with this guy because of his strengths, he proves me wrong. I thought he was going to lose his last fight, but he finds a way to win. As a 12-0 undefeated guy, you're going to have a lot of confidence, but I'm going to put my fist in his face and that confidence is going to change".

After this fight, however, it's looking like Aung La N Sang will stay in the Middleweight division.