ONE Championship News Roundup (April 12, 2023)

Welcome to today's edition of the daily Sportskeeda ONE Championship News Roundup, where we present the promotion's most important stories.

Today, we’ll discuss Roberto Soldic’s biggest mixed martial arts influences, Rodtang Jitmuangnon denying that he’s invincible, and Arjan Bhullar’s world title unification match with Anatoly Malykhin getting set for ONE Fight Night 12.

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#3. Roberto Soldic shares the biggest influences in his career

It’s almost a given that every fighter coming up the ranks has had one or two influences in their career, and Roberto Soldic is no exception.

The Croatian sensation was once a bright-eyed rookie trying to make his way up the unforgiving world of mixed martial arts.

In a recent interview with MMA Sucka, Soldic said that he once found himself training in Montreal and it was there where he met three people who would greatly shape who he is today:

“Really, I can say I lived a good life. When I was in Montreal, Canada, when I trained with Firas Zahabi, Rory MacDonald, and Georges St-Pierre. Then I flew to America to train with all those guys.”

Zahabi is one of the pioneering figures of Canadian MMA and his student Georges St-Pierre ultimately became one of the greatest fighters of all time. Rory MacDonald, meanwhile, made his mark as one of the most intense fighters of the last decade.

Soldic might just go back to what he learned from his time in Canada when he takes on Zebaztian Kadestam at ONE Fight Night 10 on Prime Video on May 5 at the 1stBank Center in Colorado.

ONE Fight Night 10 is ONE Championship’s first on-site event in the United States and will be broadcast live and for free to all Prime Video subscribers in North America.

Watch Soldic's entire interview below:

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#2. Rodtang says he doesn’t view himself as "unbeatable"

If his insane run in ONE Championship is to be judged, then it’s fair to assume that Rodtang Jitmuangnon is practically indestructible.

The ONE flyweight Muay Thai world champion is 13-0 in his Muay Thai and kickboxing matches in the promotion, with all 13 of his wins featuring highlight reels of incredible offense and tremendous resilience.

Though he’s had a perfect record in his striking matches, Rodtang said that he’s far from invincible.

In an interview with ONE Championship, the Thai megastar stated that his outstanding run is thanks to his dedication to the craft he’s put his entire life on:

“I don’t see myself as an unbeatable superstar. Not at all. I just want to put my all into fighting and do my best in showing who I am. That’s all.”

Rodtang will be put to the test once again when he defends his world title against Edgar Tabares at ONE Fight Night 10.

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#1. Arjan Bhullar vs. Anatoly Malykhin bout rescheduled for ONE Fight Night 12 in July

The world title unification match between Anatoly Malykhin and Arjan Bhullar has a new date and is set for July 14, US primetime, at the iconic Lumpinee Boxing Stadium.

Bhullar, the ONE heavyweight world champion, and Malykhin, the interim heavyweight world champion, will likely headline the ONE Fight Night 12 card in Thailand’s capital city of Bangkok.

ONE Championship chairman and CEO Chatri Sityodtong confirmed the news in an interview with Damon Martin of MMA Fighting early Tuesday:

“It’s going to happen officially now July 15. That’s the word that I got just literally a few hours ago."

Bhullar and Malykhin were booked to unify the heavyweight belts at ONE Fight Night 8. However, their fight was rescheduled “due to a shift in broadcaster commitments” that forced ONE Championship to find another date for the showdown.

ONE Fight Night 12 is available live and for free on North American television via Prime Video.