There’s no respite for former Brave CF Bantamweight Champion Stephen “The Sniper” Loman. No rest. No easy fights.
The 25-year-old fighter out of the famed Team Lakay camp of Baguio City, Philippines signed with ONE Championship a little over a month ago. Already, he’s being thrust into the warzone against arguably the most dangerous fighter at bantamweight.
Loman is set to lock horns with no. 1-ranked bantamweight contender John “Hands of Stone” Lineker of Brazil in what is one of the most highly-anticipated fights of the year. The bout serves as the main event of ONE on TNT III, which airs on Thursday, April 22.
Loman understands he’s up against a feared knockout artist in Lineker. Now, he’s coming up with a solid game plan with his team to handle the tough Brazilian.
“He is a very dangerous striker. They don’t call him ‘Hands of Stone’ for nothing. Aside from that, he also has a granite chin. It is very hard to knock him out. In fact, he’s never been knocked out in over pro 40 fights, which is a testament to his toughness. To say that he’s just another challenge is an understatement. I’m not taking him lightly,” Loman said.
“My senior, Kevin [Belingon] and Coach Mark [Sangiao] are helping me with the game plan heading into this fight. We’re analyzing and studying, coming up with the right approach to apply. Lineker is no doubt one of the toughest opponents in my career. If I can beat him, it will be huge.”
Loman’s teammate and former ONE Bantamweight World Champion Kevin Belingon fought Lineker most recently, losing to the Brazilian via second-round TKO. The longest-reigning BRAVE world champion is working closely with his ally in order to identify weak areas of Lineker’s game, but admits the effort has been difficult.
“At this level of the game, weaknesses are very hard to come by. He doesn’t have many weaknesses. And I’m not thinking about them,” said Loman.
“I’m preparing for the best John Lineker possible. Right now, we are focused on every aspect this fight could turn, whether that be in grappling, wrestling, or striking. We have to be prepared for every scenario.”
