John Lineker says fighting in the Lumpinee Stadium boxing ring will be to his advantage

In his first fight with Fabricio Andrade, John Lineker was unable to implement his signature fighting style that has brought him so much success inside the circle. Through 45 professional fights, the Brazilian has made a name for himself by stalking his opponents and looking for huge power punches.

With his relentless pace and legendary knockout power, Lineker had torn right through the bantamweight division on his way to becoming the world champion, but Andrade had an answer for everything he did.

The precise striking and rapid speed of ‘Wonder Boy’ was too much for ‘Hands of Stone’ on the feet and he was forced to change his game plan in order to remain competitive in the fight.

Going into their rematch at ONE Fight Night 7 on Prime Video, John Lineker believes he has made the right adjustments to make this fight different to their first meeting.

One aspect that he believes he can use to his advantage is the stage itself that they will be competing on. The fight will take place at the Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand, and the bantamweight world championship will be contested in a ring rather than a cage.

In an interview with the South China Morning Post on YouTube, Lineker spoke about how this could play into his hands:

“Yes, you have a point. I’m a boxer, I’m accustomed to fighting in the ring and it makes it easier for me to cut him off and corner him and that’s what I’m going to try to do.”

Watch the full interview below:

ONE Fight Night 7 will be aired live and for free to all Prime Video subscribers in North America.

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John Lineker won’t hesitate to use his wrestling and jiu-jitsu against Fabricio Andrade if there’s an opportunity

In his first fight with Fabricio Andrade, John Lineker showed a different side to his game that fans are not used to seeing.

With 17 wins via knockout on his record, Lineker isn’t called ‘Hands of Stone’ for nothing.

After being outstruck by the taller and faster Andrade, Lineker attempted to grapple with his fellow Brazilian in order to take Andrade's range away from him.

Whilst it initially came out of a need to recover and stay away from the strikes of ‘Wonder Boy’, grappling seemed to be a route to victory for Lineker after his early success with it.

In attempting to recapture the bantamweight world championship that he lost on the scales ahead of ONE on Prime Video 3, John Lineker is willing and ready to do whatever is necessary to have his hand raised, even if it means being ridiculed by Andrade for not standing with him.

In an interview with SCMP MMA ahead of ONE Fight Night 7, the former champion said:

"If I have an opportunity to use my wrestling or jiu-jitsu, that's what I’m gonna do. But I’m a boxer and I like to knock people out. That's what I intend to do.”

John Lineker is no stranger to the ground but it is usually his opponents who are looking to take him down in order to avoid his ferocious punching power. Former ONE world champion Bibiano Fernandes found out firsthand about the dangers of not taking a fight against Lineker to the floor, losing his title in devastating fashion as Lineker continued his incredible run in ONE Championship.