Why Ok Rae Yoon vs. Shinya Aoki is the fight to make at lightweight

While newly-crowned ONE lightweight world champion Ok Rae Yoon is on the mend after his win over Christian Lee. The focus now shifts to who’s next in line to challenge for the title.

As soon as Ok Rae Yoon is ready, ONE Championship’s lightweight strap will be in the spotlight once again.

Luckily, Ok Rae Yoon has a litany of worthy challengers just waiting for a crack at ONE gold, so he’s not without options. However there’s one man who stands out from the pack: two-time former ONE lightweight world champion Shinya Aoki.

Shinya Aoki takes care of business against American James Nakashima [Photo courtesy of ONE Championship]

Aoki began his first reign as lightweight champion back in 2013, taking the title from veteran Kotetsu ‘No Face’ Boku via rear-naked choke submission. Coincidentally, that was the last time a South Korean fighter held the lightweight title in ONE Championship until Ok Rae Yoon took the belt just recently.

It may seem like Aoki isn’t such a big threat at this point. Lee’s TKO performance against him may have had a lot to do with that. Picture this: ‘Tobikan Judan’ has only lost twice at lightweight since joining ONE. Every other fight, the Japanese athlete has dominated.

Subsequently, Ok Rae Yoon is a new face in the promotion. He joined ONE in early April, immediately making a splash by defeating former world champions Marat Gafurov and Eddie Alvarez to earn his shot at Lee. He has certainly made the most of his time in the Circle.

At 38-years-old, Shinya Aoki is still a dangerous opponent for Ok Rae Yoon

Aoki may be getting up there in age, but that means absolutely nothing, and the Japanese fighter has proven this time and again. Even at 38, Aoki is easily one of the most dangerous lightweights in ONE Championship.

Since losing his belt to Lee a few years ago, Aoki has come roaring back, winning four straight while scoring quick finishes of archrival Eduard Folayang, and the capable James Nakashima, among others.

There’s also a recurring theme in Aoki’s performances, in that if he’s able to get within close quarters, the takedown is almost always guaranteed. You also don’t want to be on the ground with a guy like Aoki, who boasts a whopping 30 submission victories out of 47 career wins.

Aoki knows how to nullify fighters, take them down, and make them tap. Ok Rae Yoon certainly isn’t immune to this, as good as he is.

Ok Rae Yoon vs. Shinya Aoki: styles make fights

In combat sports, styles make fights. That’s the truth of it, and Ok Rae Yoon versus Shinya Aoki offers fans that classic striker versus grappler matchup.

Ok Rae Yoon looked absolutely fantastic against high-level grappler Marat Gafurov and American veteran Eddie Alvarez. Even against Christian Lee, Ok Rae Yoon did what he had to do to win.

There’s just a method to his madness, but make no mistake about it, Ok Rae Yoon is a master of imposing his will. That’s how he wins his fights. That’s why he has 11 decision victories in 16 overall wins.

Conversely, Aoki has been equally as effective against strikers, and he’s faced some of the most dangerous strikers throughout his career. The fact of the matter is, when Aoki gets a hold of an opponent, there’s no letting go. His foes get trapped in a web of grappling that they can’t get out of.

Just like Ok Rae Yoon, Shinya Aoki is a master at imposing his will. It would be interesting to see how Ok Rae Yoon deals with Aoki’s legendary submissions.

Shinya Aoki is a fantastic option for Ok Rae Yoon

In reality, there’s a whole host of lightweight contenders Ok Rae Yoon could face in his first title defense, not least of which is a rematch with Christian Lee, who more than deserves the chance to get his title back. Matchups with Saygid Guseyn Arslanaliev and Timofey Nastyukhin are also all incredibly promising.

But the fact of the matter is, if there’s anyone who could cut Ok Rae Yoon’s lightweight title reign short, it’s none other than Aoki.

Ok Rae Yoon versus Shinya Aoki may not be the first fight on everyone’s list at lightweight. It may not be the one fans want, but it’s the fight fans deserve.