Mark “Tyson” Fairtex Abelardo is confident about hi
Abelardo welcomes the debuting Fabricio “Wonderboy” Andrade in a 67-kilogram catchweight contest at ONE: NO SURRENDER on Friday, 31 July, in Bangkok, Thailand.
The ONE Warrior Series contract winner has been on an up-and-down journey in the main roster, having split his four bouts since moving up from OWS last year.
While he praises the Brazilian’s striking, Abelardo thinks his overall game will be too much for Andrade.
“He’s a high-level striker, champion caliber, but I don’t think he’s on my level overall,” he said.
“It’s MMA, so I’m going to be looking to mix it up whether it’s standing or on the ground.”
The 28-year-old wants nothing more than to return to the win column after being outclassed by “Pretty Boy” Troy Worthen at ONE: KING OF THE JUNGLE in February.
Admitting that he allowed Worthen to dictate the pace of the match, the Filipino-Kiwi natural bantamweight promises to not make the same mistake against Andrade.
“[That loss] was a small bump in the journey. [If] you can’t win them, you just got to get better, prove yourself, and put on a better performance in my next fight, so that’s what I want to do.”
Furthermore, what “Tyson” aims to do is to give people some semblance of normalcy as most of the world struggles from the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“The entire world is reeling right now, and if by stepping into the ring and showcasing my skills can help inspire people to soldier on, I’m glad to do it,” Abelardo said.
“I am thankful we can get back to competing again. This is what I live for and I have so much I want to do in this sport. The next step starts in Bangkok.”
ONE Championship returns to live action for the first time in nearly five months with ONE: NO SURRENDER, a closed-door, audience-free card set for Friday, 31 July, in Bangkok, Thailand. Catch the event live and for free by downloading the ONE Super App.