Fabricio Andrade looks at the silver lining of his lengthy break from injury: “The chance to learn and study”

Fabricio Andrade made the most of his long layoff.

It's been more than a year since the last time 'Wonder Boy' stepped foot inside the Circle. On Friday, Jan. 24, Andrade returns set to defend his ONE bantamweight MMA world championship in one of three massive title tilts at ONE 170 inside the iconic Impact Arena in Bangkok, Thailand.

Since coming up short against Jonathan Haggerty in his professional kickboxing debut, Andrade has been sidelined while nursing an injury.

But instead of just sitting around waiting to get the all clear from doctors, the Brazilian fan favorite stayed busy in the gym, learning, adapting, and evolving so that he'd be ready to go once the call came for him.

"As a fighter, it’s very important to discover and learn more ways we can improve," Andrade said in an exclusive interview with Sportskeeda. "Over the past couple of years, there were a lot of injuries. But it also gave me the chance to learn and study how I can get better and improve from those struggles."

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Kwon Won Il seeks vengeance against Fabricio Andrade at ONE 170

When Fabricio Andrade steps back onto martial arts' biggest global stage this Friday, he'll face a man he's all too familiar with — Kwon Won Il.

Andrade and Kwon previously met at ONE 158 in June 2022. On that night, 'Wonder Boy' landed a crushing body kick just 62 seconds into the scrap that folded the South Korean and brought an end to their clash.

Since then, 'Pretty Boy' has put together an impressive run of wins, including knockouts against Mark Abelardo, Artem Belakh, and Shinechagtga Zoltsetset.

Now, Kwon will have the chance to avenge his latest loss and leave The Land of Smiles with 26 pounds of ONE Championship gold around his waist.

ONE Championship fans can catch ONE 170: Tawanchai vs. Superbon II live on Friday, Jan. 24 at watch.onefc.com.