ONE 166: Tang Kai, Thanh Le set for featherweight MMA world title unification match in Qatar

It’s barely a couple of days into the New Year, yet ONE Championship’s promise to make ONE 166: Qatar the absolute martial arts spectacle is already exceeding expectations.

The promotion announced the unification bout between Tang Kai and Thanh Le for the undisputed ONE featherweight MMA world title on the Chinese social media site Weibo.

The rematch between the featherweight monsters is part of the massive ONE 166: Qatar card, which is expected to have five world title fights on March 1 at Lusail Sports Arena.

ONE Championship posted on Weibo:

“Big official announcement 💥💥 March 1 #ONE166 Featherweight Mixed Martial Arts World Championship Unification Battle: @tankaimma vs. Thanh Le.”

Tang and Le first squared off at ONE 160 in August 2022 at Singapore Indoor Stadium. While many expected the fight to end in a knockout, the grit between the two fighters prevented such an outcome.

Although the match was as close as it can be, Tang was the more aggressive on the offensive end, and that forward pressure earned him the unanimous decision win.

A rematch between the two was scheduled for ONE Fight Night 12, but it was postponed after Tang suffered an injury in training.

Le, in Tang’s absence, captured the ONE interim featherweight MMA world championship when he submitted Russian mauler Ilya Freymanov in their ONE Fight Night 15 meeting in Bangkok.

ONE 166: Qatar is ONE Championship’s first on-site card in the country and is expected to be one of the promotion’s biggest events of 2024.

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ONE Championship plans to shake Qatar up with monumental ONE 166 card

ONE Championship earlier announced its plans to return its numbered events this year with ONE 165 and ONE 166, and the promotion pulled out all the stops for the upcoming cards.

ONE 165 will feature the highly anticipated promotional debut of kickboxing legend Takeru Segawa when he takes on ONE flyweight Muay Thai world champion Rodtang Jitmuangnon in a kickboxing super match.

ONE 166, meanwhile, already has two other world title fights announced.

ONE strawweight MMA world champion Jarred Brooks will defend his throne against former world titleholder Joshua Pacio in a match that could potentially lead to a trilogy between the rivals.

Reinier de Ridder will look to avenge his only career loss when he defends the ONE middleweight MMA world title against tormentor Anatoly Malykhin, the ONE light heavyweight and heavyweight MMA world champion, in the card’s headliner.