“Move forward” - Former bantamweight MMA champion Bibiano Fernandes says he’ll gladly walk off into the sunset after ONE 171

Former ONE bantamweight MMA world champion Bibiano Fernandes will be calling it a career following his scheduled fight this week. It is something he said he is at peace doing, recognizing that it is time to move on to the next chapter of his martial arts journey.

'The Flash' will take the ONE circle for the final time at ONE 171: Qatar on Feb. 20 at the Lusail Sports Arena in Lusail. He will battle Filipino rival Kevin Belingon in a bantamweight MMA showdown.

In an interview with ONE Championship, Fernandes opened up about retirement from competition after ONE 171, sharing that besides family, mentorship is his priority at this point.

The 44-year-old Brazilian-Canadian MMA legend said:

"Before, I only had fighting. Now, I have my school. I have a lot of students. I have a lot of people to look after. I have my whole family, my kids. I feel like I have to put my energy into something bigger."

Bibiano Fernandes added:

"Bibiano the fighter is just a small [part of my life]. But now, something bigger has come. For me, that means I have a lot of students, and a lot of people to look after. I have my family in Brazil. Sometimes in life, you have to make decisions. And at this point in my life, I think it’s the right way to [end my MMA career] and move forward."

The match at ONE 171: Qatar will be the fifth between Fernandes and Belingon. The former is looking to extend his lead in their head-to-head matchup, which currently stands at 3-1 in his favor.

For more information on ONE 171, check out onefc.com.

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Bibiano Fernandes says it is only fitting that Kevin Belingon is his last fight

Bibiano Fernandes said a showdown against Kevin Belingon is but fitting to end his illustrious MMA career for the many the battles they have had through the years.

ONE 171: Qatar this week will mark the fifth time that the two veteran fighters will be mixing it up in ONE Championship and both are angling to chalk up a victory in their final encounter in the circle.

Fernandes highlighted the appropriateness of facing off with 'The Silencer' in his swan song, telling the promotion in an interview:

"Let me put it this way. The other day, I was watching a fight between me and Kevin. I was watching that on Fecebook, it just showed up and said it had 29 million views. That fight was watched 29 million times."

Bibiano Fernandes won three of the four matches he has had so far with Belingon, the last one coming in October 2019 at ONE: Century Part II, where he won by submission (rear-naked choke).