Fabricio Andrade shows respect for John Lineker following their world title clash

Fabricio Andrade showed bantamweight rival John ‘Hands of Stone’ Lineker nothing but respect following their instant classic at ONE Fight Night 7 on Friday night.

Squaring off once again for the ONE bantamweight world championship after their October 2022 delivered an anticlimactic no-contest, the two Brazilian superstars put on an edge-of-your-seat thriller that saw both men face their fair share of danger from the opening bell.

In the end, Fabricio Andrade’s hand was raised after Lineker failed to answer the referee’s call for the fifth and final round. Citing issues with his vision after an especially brutal flurry from Andrade in the fourth, Lineker’s team threw in the towel, crowning ‘Wonder Boy’ the new ONE bantamweight world champion.

Discussing his opponent, ‘Wonder Boy’ showed nothing but respect for John Lineker after the two had built up a fair amount of animosity following their first scrap inside the Circle four months ago:

“Man, he came to fight, you know. The first fight, he was scared, but this fight he came to fight. You can see [I took] a lot of damage. It was a good fight and he made it even more worth it to hold this belt. No words, Lineker is one of the toughest bantamweights on the planet but I was like, there’s no way I’m walking out of here without this belt.”

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Will we see Fabricio Andrade vs. John Lineker III?

With a ONE bantamweight world champion being crowned on Friday night, the division can once again move forward, the likeliest scenario being a showdown between newly minted world champion Fabricio Andrade and top contender Stephen Loman doing battle later this year, but is it possible that fans could be treated to a trilogy bout between Andrade and Lineker down the line?

Given that both of their contests were highly entertaining, fans would likely welcome a third meeting between the two, but before we get there, John Lineker will likely need to go get a win or two in the division. An immediate rematch may have been justifiable had their first meeting been a little more even.

Considering most fans and fighters believe Andrade was seconds away from a certain victory before delivering an ill-placed knee, a rematch at this time would be tough to justify.

Still, the fact that both fighters delivered on expectations will likely leave the promotion open to booking a trilogy bout down the line, but John Lineker will have to go and earn it first.