“My time has come” - Akbar Abdullaev ready to walk the talk and prove he is the best against Tang Kai

Akbar Abdullaev plans to prove at ONE Fight Night 27 that "the new generation has come" to ONE Championship. On Friday, Jan. 10, Abdullaev will face the toughest challenge of his fighting career.

The undefeated featherweight has been matched up for a main event against ONE featherweight MMA world champion Tang Kai. Abdullaev has shown flashes of greatness in his ONE tenure.

The 27-year-old now looks to prove he's the real deal by taking out Tang, which he explained during a recent interview for the ONE Fight Night 27 event:

"I have come to ONE Championship to become number one. I knew from the beginning I could become the best at that."

Abdullaev also had this to say:

"I want to prove that the new generation has come, new fighters [have come], and the best fighters are from Kyrgyzstan. I would like to bring this belt to my motherland. My time has come."

Unfortunately, Abdullaev won't be eligible to become the featherweight MMA world champion at ONE Fight Night 27. He failed multiple hydration tests for his fight against Tang Kai, postponing his opportunity to secure ONE gold.

ONE Fight Night 27 goes down inside the legendary combat sports venue of Lumpinee Boxing Stadium. Friday's event can be seen live and for free by North American and Canadian viewers with an active Amazon Prime Video subscription.

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Akbar Abdullaev's run in ONE Championship

Akbar Abdullaev made his ONE Championship debut in March 2023 at ONE Fight Night 8. The Kyrgyzstan featherweight made an immediate impact in the division with a 44-second knockout win against Oh Ho Taek.

Abdullaev found similar success in his second promotional appearance, knocking out Aaron Canarte in 41 seconds. The 27-year-old's third fight in ONE finally reached the second round where he knocked out Halil Amir at ONE Fight Night 22.

Abdullaev's ONE Championship run has undoubtedly been impressive, especially for a fighter relatively inexperienced at the professional level. At ONE Fight Night 27, 'Bakal' plans to silence any doubters by taking out Tang Kai.

Tang has remained undefeated in ONE with an 8-0 record. The 29-year-old plans to continue building momentum following back-to-back wins against Thanh Le by handing Abdullaev his first professional loss.