ONE Championship returns to TNT this April, Demetrious Johnson and Eddie Alvarez featured

ONE Championship managed to snag some international superstars in recent years, and this upcoming April we’ll be seeing two former UFC champs in action.…

By: Victor Rodriguez | 2 years ago
ONE Championship returns to TNT this April, Demetrious Johnson and Eddie Alvarez featured
Bloody Elbow 2.0 | Anton Tabuena

ONE Championship managed to snag some international superstars in recent years, and this upcoming April we’ll be seeing two former UFC champs in action.

The Asia-based organization announced on social media that former UFC flyweight champion Demetrious Johnson and former UFC and Bellator lightweight champ Eddie Alvarez will both be fighting on April 7th, live on TNT.

Johnson (30-3, 1 draw) signed with ONE after his controversial loss to Henry Cejudo, making his debut with them in 2019. As part of a newly-formed tournament, he sunk an absolutely brutal choke on the very talented Yuya Wakamatsu and went on to clear the field with wins over Tatsumitsu Wada and Danny Kingad. Having won the tournament, he’ll now be challenging for the flyweight title against Adriano Moraes.

Moraes (18-3) cut his teeth mostly in Shooto Brasil and has been a submission threat with an ever-improving overall game. The Constrictor Team standout has had quietly racked up some impressive wins against some very good international talent, and this will be his most high-profile fight to date. This is his third stint as ONE flyweight champ, and his submission style could pose some threats to Johnson in this bout.

Eddie Alvarez (30-7) also departed the UFC for greener pastures after his contract expired and signed with ONE with some heavy expectations. He started off with an unfortunate debut loss to Timofey Nastyukhin that was followed up by a sensational win in a nail-biter against Eduard Folayang, both in 2019. His opponent will be Iuri Lapicus, another submission dynamo that challenged Christian Lee for the lightweight belt back in October, falling short.

Finally, Muay Thai devastator Rodtang Jitmuangnon will return to action against British talent Jacob Smith. More fights are to be announced soon.

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About the author
Victor Rodriguez
Victor Rodriguez

Victor Rodriguez has been a writer and podcaster for Bloody Elbow since 2015. He started his way as a lowly commenter and moderator to become the miscreant he is now. He often does weekly bits on fringe martial arts items across the globe, oddball street combat pieces, previews, analysis, and some behind-the-scenes support. He has trained in wrestling, Karate, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, and the occasional Muay Thai and Judo lesson here and there. Victor has also been involved with acting and audio editing projects. He lives in Pennsylvania where he plays way too many video games and is an S-rank dad.

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