WATCH: Interim featherweight MMA champ Thanh Le lets it loose in his open workouts ahead of ONE 166 in Qatar

Interim ONE featherweight MMA champion Thanh Le plans on leaving Lusail Sports Arena with undisputed gold wrapped around his waist.

On Friday, March 1, the Vietnamese-American knockout machine returns to the Circle four months removed from his stunning 62-second finish of Ilya Freymanov to claim the interim crown, setting the stage for an epic rematch with the division’s undisputed king — Tang Kai.

“Interim featherweight champ @thanhlemma and @the_asian_cajun shake it out at the ONE 166 open workouts in Qatar.”

Going into the first meeting with five straight wins by way of knockout, Thanh Le’s offense was stifled for 25 minutes, allowing Tang Kai to dictate the pace, control the Circle, and most importantly, leave Singapore with the featherweight belt.

Running it back in Qatar at the ONE 166 co-main event, Thanh Le is determined to right the wrong and once again hoist undisputed gold over his head.

---

Thanh Le vows to finish Tang Kai inside the distance at ONE 166

In 22 career fights as both an amateur and a pro, Thanh Le had never once gone to the scorecards until his first meeting with Tang Kai at ONE 160.

“It's not going to happen again, going to a decision,” Le told Sportskeeda MMA. “That was the only decision I've ever had amateur or pro. It is definitely not going to happen again.”

Tang Kai goes into his first ONE world title defense with an unblemished 7-0 record inside the Circle with four of those victories coming by way of knockout. That includes back-to-back-to-back KOs against Ryogo Takahashi, Yoon Chang Min, and perennial contender Kim Jae Woong before his title-winning performance against Le.

Will Tang Kai make it eight straight with another impressive showing, or will Le redeem himself and climb back to the top of the featherweight mountain?

Amazon Prime Video subscribers in North America can catch all the action at ONE 166: Qatar live and for free on Friday, March 1.