Stephen Loman vows to train harder after delayed showdown with Fabricio Andrade: “I’ll be a better fighter”

Since arriving at ONE Championship in 2021, Stephen Loman has been a force to be reckoned with in the bantamweight division, as he swept all three bouts under the world’s largest martial arts organization.

This impressive and immaculate streak of 'The Sniper' includes a first-round TKO of Yusup Saadulaev and unanimous decision victories over Shoko Sato and Bibiano Fernandes.

Furthermore, it landed Loman the No. 2 spot in the divisional rankings and an outright world title shot against reigning ONE bantamweight world champion Fabricio Andrade. However, the Brazilian world champion made a pit stop to another sport.

On August 9, 2023, ONE announced that Andrade will face reigning ONE bantamweight Muay Thai world champion Jonathan Haggerty for the vacant ONE bantamweight kickboxing world title at ONE Fight Night 15 on Prime Video.

But the Team Lakay standout doesn't mind waiting for his shot against Andrade. In fact, he views it as a blessing in disguise and an opportunity to improve all facets of his MMA arsenal to become the best version of himself when he finally meets “Wonder Boy” inside the Circle.

Loman shared his initial thoughts on the upcoming Andrade-Haggerty showdown with the MMA Superfan:

“It’s really fine with me because, the way I see it, Andrade isn’t just a regular opponent. Now that he’s fighting Haggerty, I can use that time to fine-tune my game plan and train some more, so that I’ll be a better fighter.”

Andrade also believes that Loman rightfully deserves the world title shot over John Lineker, whom he beat in February 2023 via fourth-round corner stoppage to become the undisputed ONE bantamweight world champion.

Catch ONE Fight Night 15 on October 6, as it is free of charge for Prime Video subscribers in North America.