Almost reminds me of Mike Tyson in his heyday - ONE Championship CEO Chatri Sityodtong gives high praise to John Lineker's striking

ONE Championship CEO Chatri Sityodtong has nothing but high praise for bantamweight title contender John Lineker before his main event fight against Bibiano Fernandes at ONE: Bad Blood on Friday, February 11.

Speaking to the South China Morning Post, Sityodtong compared the Brazilian brawler to boxing legend Mike Tyson:

"John is one of these guys [who are] wild. It almost reminds me of like, Tyson in his heyday, in his prime where the thing about Tyson that was so scary was he would throw punches in bunches, but everything had that ill intent that he was not afraid to throw, you know? A lot of athletes might have the KO power, but are very measured and reserved, waiting for the right opportunity to throw it. Then you got crazy guys like Lineker who just go all out. Not afraid to get knocked out, just goes all out."

Few could have said it better about the man who earned the moniker 'Hands of Stone' and the numbers don't lie. Since arriving in ONE Championship in 2019, Lineker is still unbeaten and has won two of his first three fights by way of knockout.

Although Sityodtong also has all the confidence in the world in Fernandes' ground game, he did warn the reigning bantamweight king about going toe-to-toe with Lineker's striking supremacy:

"Obviously, Bibi is a multiple-time jiu-jitsu world champion. I think if it goes to the ground, I think Bibi has a chance to finish it. But at the same time, Lineker has a chance to finish it if he clips Bibi's chin. Bibi is obviously very tough, but man [with] Lineker, I don't think you get the moniker 'Hands of Stone' for no reason, right?"

Watch the rest of Sityodtong's interview with SCMP here:

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Bibiano Fernandes is more than eager to put ONE Championship gold on the line against John Lineker

There's no doubt Bibiano Fernandes is very much aware of the power his fellow Brazilian John Lineker holds.

However, with so many verbal barbs thrown in the lead-up, both veterans are just happy to finally meet in the ONE Championship Circle.

For Fernandes, the fact that he is facing a new foe after three straight bouts with Kevin Belingon is more than enough motivation. He told the South China Morning Post:

"Oh my God. Fighting John Lineker is the best thing happening for me, because ONE Championship pushed Kevin so hard to fight me and finally now, I will fight somebody new and I have to adjust to a new style."

Tune in to ONE: Bad Blood to see weeks of verbal jabs finally become physical.