The double main event card for ONE Championship: Roots of Honor just got deeper as two of Baguio City’s finest mixed martial artists have been added to the card as well.
Roots of Honor takes place on Friday, April 12 at the SM Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City.
Filipino martial arts veteran Edward “The Ferocious” Kelly will take on South Korean grappler Sung Jong Lee.
Kelly, a Philippine Featherweight Champion, is well-versed in both the striking and grappling arts. A senior member of the famed Team Lakay of Baguio City, Kelly is best known for his 21-second knockout victory over Cambodia’s Meas Meul in January 2018.
He aims for the same result against Lee.
Edward’s brother Eric will also make his return to face China’s Tang Kai.
Kelly had a blazing start to his mixed martial arts career by winning his first 12 professional bouts. In February 2013, he competed for the inaugural ONE Featherweight World Title, falling short against Filipino compatriot Honorio Banario. A year later, Kelly came back and put together the performance of a lifetime when he submitted tough Australian Rob Lisita.
Now after revitalizing his training camp, Kelly looks to reignite his career against Tang.
In other bouts, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu World Champion Leandro “Brodinho” Issa of Brazil is back to take on former CKF Champion Fu Chang Xin of China. Meanwhile, Dutch-Moroccan kickboxer Ibrahim “Mr. Cool” El Bouni looks to put himself back on the right track when he takes on Andrei “Mister KO” Stoica of Romania.
In welterweight action, Brazilian mixed martial arts veteran Luis “Sapo” Santos is back in action against undefeated American James Nakashima.
In a ONE Super Series Kickboxing contest, Andre “The Giant” Meunier of Australia takes on Anderson “Braddock” Silva of Brazil. Meunier, a four-time Kickboxing World Champion, will welcome Silva to ONE Championship, as the latter makes his debut for the promotion.
In a ONE Super Series Muay Thai contest, Thai legend and former MTGP Welterweight World Champion Saemapetch Fairtex takes on former Lion Fight Lightweight World Champion Ognjen Topic. Both Saemapetch and Topic are top contenders in ONE Super Series, and the two will figure in a highly-anticipated bantamweight showdown.
In another ONE Super Series Muay Thai contest, the legendary Lerdsila PhuketTopTeam of Thailand will showcase his fistic talents against Japan’s Kohei “Momotaro” Kodera.
Vietnamese-American female atomweight contender Bi “Killer Bee” Nguyen is also set to make her much-awaited ONE Championship debut opposite Indonesia’s Dwi Ani Retno Wulan.
Finally, National Kyokushin Karate Champion Ramon “The Bicolano” Gonzales of the Philippines and Akihiro “Superjap” Fujisawa of Japan will square off in a three-round strawweight contest.
