The action in ONE FC is heating up and one name being thrown around a lot as of late is the interim 135-pound champion, Bibiano Fernandes (14-3). There has been some talk of having Fernandes move up to featherweight to fight the legendary Shinya Aoki, but it appears that ONE FC officials have other plans. Reportedly, Fernandes will fight in a bantamweight unification bout first against the inauguaral ONE FC champion before any super fight will occur.
While the MMA world would rather see the Fernandes vs. Aoki fight, company officials feel that if Soo Chul Kim (7-4) is healthy and ready to fight, he should get a chance at unifying his title before Fernandes moves on. Kim is a talented fighter that became the first-ever ONE FC bantamweight champion in October 2012 after a spectacular knockout finish of Leandro Issa. He hasn’t fought since and would be making his first defense against the 33-year-old Fernandes.
Fernandes is one of the most established fighters in mixed martial arts to never compete in the UFC. There was talk of him signing with the promotion, but he chose ONE FC instead. He is a former DREAM featherweight champion and won the DREAM bantamweight title on New Year’s Eve 2011. He has been stellar during his time in Japan and is riding a six fight winning streak. If and when the super fight between two of the best fighters in ONE FC occurs, a win by Fernandes could make the UFC come calling for his big break.
