Kwon Won Il is riding high off the momentum of his most recent victory, an explosive body shot knockout of former ONE bantamweight world champion Kevin ‘The Silencer’ Belingon at ONE: Winter Warriors II last December.
Kwon Won Il's performance placed him in the No.2 spot in ONE Championship’s official bantamweight rankings. He's now just behind No.1 contender John ‘Hands of Stone’ Lineker and reigning bantamweight king Bibiano ‘The Flash’ Fernandes.
In a recent Instagram post, Kwon Won Il explained why he thinks he is next in line for a shot at the bantamweight throne. The caption read:
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“I said it and I’ll say it again. THE NEXT TITLE SHOT IS MINE 🔥 I’ve been in ONE Championship from early 2019. From then, I fought 6 times in one year. I’m the most active fighter ever in ONE Championship 💯 This was only possible because I never said no to ONE Championship’s offer. 8 days notice, 2 weeks notice, and whatever didn’t matter to me. I’m someone who’s always there for my company. And I believe that @yodchatri @slicricauty @michaelpark.0708 will reward me for all I’ve done for @onechampionship. Now I have 3 consecutive wins, with the last win coming from the fight against the former champion, Kevin Belingon. And most of my fights are Fight of the Night or some are even Fight of the Year candidate.”
The three-fight winning streak is legit, with Kwon Won Il posting wins over Bruno Pucci and Chen Rui in addition to his scintillating stoppage of Belingon. Where he is right now in the rankings, Kwon certainly has a case for being next in line for the title shot.
Kwon Won Il wants the winner of Fernandes vs. Lineker
Fernandes and Lineker are set to throw down for the ONE bantamweight world title at ONE: Bad Blood on February 11. This fight was already confirmed by ONE Championship.
Kwon doesn’t think anyone deserves to face the winner of this bout more than he does. In his post, he continued:
“I’m ranked number 2 Bantamweight in the world. Only John Lineker and Bibiano Fernandes are on top of me and they are fighting each other already. I AM NEXT! I’m the new generation icon, franchise star of ONE Championship and I WILL BE THE NEXT WORLD CHAMPION! See you in the circle to the winner of Bibiano Fernandez vs John Lineker! 🙏🏼”