ONE Championship news roundup (April 26, 2023)

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

Today’s issue talks about news about ONE Fight Night 12 in July, Reinier de Ridder’s favorite thing about ONE Championship, and Zebaztian Kadestam’s prediction on his match with Roberto Soldic.

3. Tang Kai vs. Thanh Le 2 set to headline ONE Fight Night 12 in July

As we count the days down to ONE Championship’s first on-ground event in the United States, the promotion is already setting up fights that we can look forward to in the coming months.

On July 14h, ONE featherweight world champion Tang Kai will defend his belt for the first time against former titleholder Thanh Le at ONE Fight Night 12. It will be a rematch of their August 2022 clash that saw them go the distance in a hard-fought contest.

Both fighters came in with pristine records in ONE Championship, with Le riding a five-fight knockout streak while Tang won six straight, highlighted by four stoppages. Considering their body of work and their competitive battle, it was an easy call to set up a rematch.

The venue is yet to be announced, so stay tuned for more details on this upcoming event in the coming weeks.

2. Reinier de Ridder shares what he thinks is ‘the cool thing’ with ONE Championship

Reinier de Ridder will perform live in front of a live U.S. audience at ONE Fight Night 10, and he’s excited for fans to witness the showcase that ONE Championship brings.

‘The Dutch Knight’ has made his mark in combat sports by being one of the best grapplers in MMA, but he will be competing in submission grappling for the second time in the promotion on the May 5 event, as he takes on Tye Ruotolo.

In an interview with The MMA Superfan, De Ridder said American fans will be in for a treat. He said:

“They’re kind of used to a lot of MMA events, right? The cool thing with ONE is we mix it all up. We have grappling matches, we have Muay Thai matches.”

ONE Fight Night 10 will have a little of everything for every fight fan. Three world titles will be on the line in three different sports, and some of the biggest stars in their respective disciplines will also see action in the event.

1. Zebaztian Kadestam says zero chance Roberto Soldic fight goes the distance

Zebaztian Kadestam has a 100% finishing rate in ONE Championship, and he believes that will continue to be true when he takes on Roberto Soldic at ONE Fight Night 10.

The two knockout artists will meet in a welterweight MMA battle on May 5 in what is expected to be one of the most explosive bouts in the event.

‘The Bandit’ spoke with ONE Championship to share his prediction on how his match with Soldic will turn out. He said:

“The fight has got to end by KO. Anything else is not enough. I’m giving this fight zero percent chance of going the distance.”

Both fighters are looking to make a statement in their fight. Kadestam wants to reclaim the belt he once held, and adding ‘Robocop’ to his list of conquests will no doubt go a long way in making his case to challenge for it.

Meanwhile, Soldic had a disappointing promotional debut after his match ended abruptly due to an accidental shot to the groin. He hopes to make up for it by showing the world why there is so much hype behind him.