It’s safe to say that ONE Fight Night 3 was a show that former ONE Bantamweight World Champion John “Hands of Stone” Lineker would love to forget.
Stripped of the belt after weighing in over the bantamweight limit, the Brazilian failed to get his redemption in the Circle. He was battered by Fabricio “Wonder Boy” Andrade before the match ended prematurely after an inadvertent low knee stopped Lineker in his tracks.
After a five-minute rest, Lineker still couldn’t continue and the match was deemed a no-contest.
“I knew that Fabrício was a very tough guy. I always said he was very talented in my interview, so I expected a tough fight. I couldn’t find myself at the beginning of the fight, but I didn’t expect anything different than a war against him,” Lineker said.
“The pain was unbearable. I thought it would never stop hurting. In addition to the pain, I couldn’t breathe properly. I was quite scared of the pain. My cup broke. It wasn’t just the impact, the blow went through the cup.
“It took all my strength and my momentum. I already did some tests and, thank God, it was nothing serious. I’m still feeling a little pain, I was even afraid to go to the bathroom afterward. But, according to the doctors’ assessment, everything is fine with me.”
Luckily, Lineker didn’t have lingering injuries from the fight—whether it was in his groin area or his eye that was swollen shut because of Andrade’s jab and straight-punch combos.
Though Lineker had some animosity with Andrade leading up to the fight, “Hands of Stone” still tipped his hat to his younger foe, noting that his challenger put him in situations he wasn’t ready for.
“I usually don’t have a hard time going up against taller guys or guys with a bigger wingspan, but his kicks and knees worried me a little, and that’s why I didn’t get into his range that much,” Lineker said.
“I could have explored the low kicks more to disrupt his game and come in with my boxing, but his jabs were getting in and keeping me away from him.”
That doesn’t mean he’s shying away from the rematch, as he hopes to face “Wonder Boy” in the near future.
“I believe there will be a second fight. The audience wants to see that fight again. It was a very exciting fight, a war, and the audience likes that style of fighting. It was a very busy fight. I want to face him again soon, but first I need to recover,” he said.
“I really want to get this belt back. I didn’t lose the title to an opponent, but to the scales. This belt is actually mine. I remain the champion. I can’t wait to fight for the belt again.”
Meanwhile, tickets for ONE 164: Pacio vs. Brooks at the Mall of Asia Arena on December 3 are already available through https://smtickets.com/events/view/11439.
Also, catch “Globe Presents ONE Warrior Series Philippines” every Sunday night on GTV, the ONE Super App, and watch.onefc.com. Weekly replays air on Tap Go, ONE Championship Philippines Facebook, and ONE Championship’s official YouTube channel.