John Lineker says ability to ‘survive’ Kim Jae Woong’s ground game made the difference

Former ONE bantamweight MMA world champion ‘Hands of Stone’ John Lineker faced a little bit of adversity in his last fight. Luckily, his infamous power saved the day in the end, as he knocked out his opponent with just seconds remaining on the clock.

The no.1-ranked bantamweight MMA contender Lineker took on dangerous South Korean ‘The Fighting God’ Kim Jae Woong at ONE Fight Night 13: Allazov vs. Grigorian on Prime Video last week, and was taken down early. The 33-year-old was instantly smothered on the ground with his back to the canvas, as Kim pounded away.

Being the veteran that he is, Lineker managed to escape and made it back up to his feet in the second round. From that point on, ‘Hands of Stone’ made it a point to keep the fight standing at all costs.

In the final stanza, Lineker hurt Kim with a clubbing left hook, dropping the South Korean, and then followed up with shots from the top to force the stoppage.

Speaking in the official ONE Fight Night 13 post-event interviews backstage, Lineker talked about having to battle through that adversity, and admits he just ‘survived’.

‘Hands of Stone’ said:

“I managed to survive there and the fight turned my way.”

In the end, Lineker powered through his predicament using veteran experience, and emerged the victor, ready to live and fight another day.

ONE Fight Night 13: Allazov vs. Grigorian on Prime Video took place at the iconic Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok. Fans in the United States and Canada can catch a replay of all the action absolutely free on Amazon Prime Video.