John Lineker says Fabricio Andrade’s punches were only superficial damage

Whilst the first fight may not have gone his way, John Lineker can still draw some positives from his fight with Fabricio Andrade at ONE on Prime Video 3.

At ONE Fight Night 7 on February 24, the two Brazilians will meet once again for the vacant bantamweight world championship after their first fight ended in a no contest.

It was clear that Fabricio Andrade was the better man on the night and would have likely left the event as the world champion had it not been for an unintentional foul that caused an end to the fight.

John Lineker has achieved a lot in the sport of MMA throughout his unwavering gameplan. The man they call ‘Hands of Stone’ wants to walk forward, back his opponents up, and land his powerful punches. In his first fight with Andrade, he wasn’t able to do this and that’s what he needs to correct for the rematch.

Despite having issues with the speed and range of ‘Wonder Boy’, Lineker now knows that he can take Andrade’s best punches and carry on moving forward, and that his knees are in fact his most dangerous weapons. In an interview with ONE Championship, John Lineker said:

“I watched my fight against him again. Inside the cage, it’s one thing. Watching it on TV you have another vision. The fact is that I let him land a lot of jabs, which ended up hurting my face a lot. I wasn’t feeling his punches so much. I wasn’t afraid of his punches, so I took those jabs and ended up getting a pretty bruised face.”

ONE Fight Night 7 will be broadcast live and for free on Prime Video for all Amazon subscribers across North America.

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WATCH: John Lineker’s terrifying ONE Championship debut against Muin Gafurov

It’s safe to say that last time out was not John Lineker’s finest performance of his career, but that doesn’t mean what he is capable of inside the Circle should be forgotten.

In the lead-up to his fight with Fabricio Andrade at ONE on Prime Video 3, Lineker was on a dominant run that saw him defeat Bibiano Fernandes to become the bantamweight world champion. Lineker’s run in ONE Championship all started with a debut that put the rest of the bantamweights on notice.

After making his name in the United States, ‘Hands of Stone’ arrived in Asia and let everyone know what he is all about and what to expect from him each and every time he steps foot inside of a cage.

Facing a rising contender in sambo specialist Muin Gafurov, John Lineker lived up to his reputation for producing great fights. Whilst he may have been unable to achieve a trademark knockout that has become a staple of his career, it was a vintage performance from the Brazilian regardless.

Ahead of his rematch with Fabricio Andrade on February 24 at ONE Fight Night 7 on Prime Video, remind yourself of John Lineker at his best by watching his ONE Championship debut that turned him into a household name in a new promotion.

Watch Linekar's ONE debut below: