Rising featherweight contender Ilya Freymanov made a splash in his ONE Championship debut at ONE on Prime Video 2. He's now eyeing the top-ranked foes in the division—including current champ Tang Kai.
After steamrolling a former champion in Martin Nguyen, Freymanov is ready for the next step towards reaching gold. Following the win, he respectfully called out Tang Kai:
"I would be glad to be matched up against him. If it happened, as I said, I would be the champion. I am here to win."
Undoubtedly confident, the Russian striker is already the No.3-ranked featherweight on ONE's roster. He's now in line for a title-eliminator match.
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Ilya Freymanov is here to be world champion
Since signing with ONE earlier in 2022, Freymanov has had one goal in mind—becoming a world champion. The organization pinned him up against a promotional legend in his debut, and he passed the test with flying colors.
Defeating Nguyen in the manner he did caused a substantial shake-up in the featherweight rankings. Freymanov went from being unranked to entering at No.3. The rising star expects to one day fight Tang Kai, whom he has respect for:
"I have nothing but respect for him. I think he is good person. I met him personally, although we did not get a chance to chat much because of my bad English. People back in his country appreciate and love him, and they treat him with respect, and it says a lot about his personality."
It's expected he'll have to conquer one of the two men ranked ahead of him—Kim Jae Woong or Thanh Le—prior to challenging for the belt.
The Kuznya Fight Club trainee is welcoming any and all opponents en route to a title fight. However, Ilya Freymanov believes it's only right that he faces someone ranked ahead of him next.
The 26-year-old possesses immense talent to go along with an electric fighting style. Fans across the globe were treated to a highlight finish in his ONE debut. Freymanov expects that to be the norm going forward.
Catch Ilya Freymanov's full finish at ONE on Prime Video 2 below: