"They gave me tough opponents" - Bokang Masunyane proud to hold his own in stacked strawweight MMA ranks

Bokang Masunyane has not had an easy run of fights as of late, but he's happy to be tested at the highest level.

The South African contender announced his arrival in ONE Championship's strawweight MMA division with back-to-back wins.

After coming up short in his one and loss in the promotion to current interim champion Jarred Brooks, Masunyane has been able to bounce back in style.

With other contenders looking to take his place in the top five rankings, he has sent them back down the pecking order. Victories over Hiroba Minowa and Keito Yamakita have kept him in the title picture.

Ahead of his return at ONE Fight Night 25 he reflected on these recent results in an interview with ONE Championship:

"Yes, they gave me tough opponents, but I was able to showcase that I still belonged in that top five and defend my spot for the last two fights. Basically, I've felt like a world champion defending my title but it's been defending my spot against the up-and-coming fighters. And they were all great fighters who have come back to win since, and it shows that they are the top contenders."

---

This will prepare Bokang Masunyane well for his next bout

Competing against top contenders that want to knock him off his spot will prepare Bokang Masunyane well for his return on Oct. 4.

At Lumpinee Stadium, he will take on Mansur Malachiev, who has also beaten some top opposition during his time in the promotion.

The Russian is coming off a bounce-back win over former champion Yosuke Saruta and now, with a win over Masunyane, he will look to enter the title picture.

Both men know what a win here could do for them and it's sure to be an interesting clash of styles when they meet for the first time.

ONE Fight Night 25 will air live in US primetime free of charge for Prime Video subscribers in North America.