"Now is your chance to shine" - Cole Abate looks for explosive ONE debut vs Japan's Shinya Aoki at ONE Fight Night 26

Cole Abate has a huge opportunity heading into ONE Fight Night 26 at Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand.

The 20-year-old competitor has already started to turn heads and get people talking as an emerging star in submission grappling.

However, competing on a platform like ONE is a big step for him, and Abate will want to put his best foot forward in his new home.

He also has the opportunity to produce a statement performance and win against a legendary competitor who is a living legend of combat sports.

On December 6, Abate will make his ONE debut in a lightweight submission grappling contest with Shinya Aoki.

As a former lightweight MMA world champion, Aoki has an insane amount of high-level experience under his belt making him a dangerous opponent for the young, rising contender who is looking to take his spot.

In a recent interview with ONE Championship, Abate spoke about what this fight means to him and how he's approaching it mentally:

"Now is your chance to shine. Would you rather shy away and be this guy's stepping stone? Or would you rather make him the stepping stone and just keep going forward and getting closer to the goals that you've set?"

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Cole Abate is looking forward to introducing himself to the ONE fans

In some ways, facing Shinya Aoki at ONE Fight Night 26 is a trial by fire for Cole Abate who is still climbing to the top.

That's also exactly why he has such a big opportunity to hit the ground running under the ONE banner while introducing himself to the fans by facing off with a legend like Aoki.

Abate will have dreamed of moments like this but he can't afford to get lost in the chaos on December 6.