John Lineker shuts down talk of next challenges until after Fabricio Andrade rematch

Former ONE bantamweight world champion John Lineker admits he developed tunnel vision ahead of his rematch with Fabricio Andrade at ONE Fight Night 7.

Like a raging bull who only sees red, ‘Hands of Stone’ simply has sights for redemption against his heated rival on February 24 inside the legendary Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand.

Everything else is just white noise. At least for now.

In an exclusive interview with Sportskeeda MMA, John Lineker briefly discussed the current state of ONE’s 145-pound division.

The bantamweight throne remains vacant in the meantime after Lineker and Andrade’s first encounter at ONE on Prime Video 3 last year ended in an unfortunate no-contest.

While the 32-year-old acknowledges other worthy contenders for the gold strap, the only thing on his mind right now is putting an end to his rivalry with Andrade with a decisive victory. He shared:

“Right now I'm 100% focused on Andrade, but I think the bantamweight division is hotly contested. There are certainly other challengers to the title. But at the moment I don't think of another rival, and I want to focus 100% of my energies on this fight with Andrade. Then I’ll see what comes next.”

All eyes will definitely be on Lineker and Andrade given the controversial nature of how their first fight concluded. Then again, most pundits are already looking ahead to the possible next world title challenger – the third-ranked bantamweight Stephen Loman.

‘The Sniper’ registered a career-defining performance against the division’s long-time ruler Bibiano Fernandes. Lineker, for his part, is taking it one step at a time. He brings forth a massive chip on his shoulder in his do-over with the favored Andrade.

ONE Fight Night 7: Lineker vs Andrade II on Prime Video will air live and free in the United States and Canada with Amazon Prime.

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John Lineker insists Fabricio Andrade did not beat him in their first match

John Lineker is still technically unbeaten in ONE Championship after his setback against Fabricio Andrade was deemed void. However, in the eyes of most fans, Andrade won that match since he was on the verge of knocking out ‘Hands of Stone’ prior to that fight-ending foul.

Making matters worse for Lineker, he had already lost the belt even before he stepped foot inside the ONE Circle after failing to meet the demands of the scales.

Lineker, in an interview with ONE Championship, detailed how he plans to right his wrongs in the rematch:

“This fight will show that he didn’t beat me and that he wasn’t the one who took my belt. But like I said, none of us have anything to prove. We’re going to enter the cage, do our best, and in the end, we’ll see who will leave with their arms raised.”