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ONE Championship's return engagement in Qatar in February has taken further form, with the long-standing rivalry between former bantamweight kings Bibiano Fernandes and Kevin Belingon revisited.
The two MMA stars are set to collide for the fifth time at ONE 171: Qatar on Feb. 20 in a featured bantamweight showdown. It is part of the promotion's second live on-ground event in Qatar after ONE 166 back in March, which is set to take place again at the Lusail Sports Arena in Lusail.
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The showdown at ONE 171 will see Fernandes and Belingon's first battle since their last encounter in October 2019. The Filipino fighter fell on his bid to take back the bantamweight gold to the then-Brazilian world champion by submission.
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Both Bibiano Fernandes and Kevin Belingon were last in action in November 2022 at ONE on Prime Video 4 in Singapore. The former lost to Filipino fighter Stephen Loman by decision while the latter was TKO'd in the opening round by South Korea's Kim Jae Woong.
ONE 171: Qatar will be aired live and for free in U.S. primetime to North American fans with an active Amazon Prime Video subscription.
Bibiano Fernandes seeks to keep his dominance of Kevin Belingon at ONE 171
Brazilian MMA legend Bibiano Fernandes battles Kevin Belingon anew at ONE 171: Qatar on Feb. 20, looking to keep his dominance over his Filipino rival. 'The Flash' has faced off with 'The Silencer' four previous times in ONE Championship, taking three of them.
They first met in January 2016 at ONE: Dynasty of Champions in China, where Fernandes forced an opening-round submission (kimura) to retain the bantamweight MMA world title. The two then had a rematch in November 2018 at ONE: Heart of The Lion in Singapore, with Belingon hacking out a hard-earned split decision victory to be crowned new bantamweight king.
A trilogy fight ensued in March 2019 at ONE: A New Era in Japan, which unfortunately ended in a disqualification of Belingon after he hit his rival with illegal elbows at the back of the head in the third round. The DQ forced him to surrender the belt to Fernandes.
The two met for the fourth time in October 2019 at ONE: Century Part II in Tokyo, with Fernandes emerging on top with a second-round submission (rear-naked choke) win.
At ONE 171, their saga continues with both looking to prove they still have it to compete at a high level at this late stage of their careers.
