It has been almost four years since ONE Bantamweight World Champion Bibiano “The Flash” Fernandes and Kevin “The Silencer” Belingon first shared the Circle in ONE Championship.
Three bouts later, both athletes remain inseparable.
Now, the pair look to end their rivalry once and for all when they share the stage for the fourth time at ONE: Century Part II on October 13 at Ryogoku Kokugikan in Tokyo, Japan.
Their rivalry is certainly second to none in the organization. What makes it even more special is how both of them continue to grow as their competition grows nearer.
Take Belingon, for example.
Back in 2016, Team Lakay’s ground game was questionable to say the least. ONE: Dynasty of Champions proved that when the Filipino lost by first-round submission to the Brazilian.
But the 31-year-old remained undeterred and continuously worked on his ground defense to make him a more well-rounded athlete. This resulted in quality wins and another shot at Fernandes at ONE: Heart of the Lion – where he ultimately handed the AMC Pankration star his first defeat in eight years.
“The Flash” still remains the more dangerous man on the ground, but the Kiangan, Ifugao native has definitely learned something since their first encounter.
“In losses, we always take something out of it, which makes us better in the long-run,” Belingon said.
“I’d like to believe that I am a smarter fighter now, and that’s exactly what I plan to show against Fernandes.”
Still, Belingon is not the only athlete who has improved.
The 39-year-old Brazilian continues to look better with age, and he admits he has picked up a few things from Belingon as the rivalry stretches on.
For one, he believes he is now a better striker than when they first met. That was evident when he rocked the Team Lakay athlete with a huge right hook in their last meeting at ONE: A New Era.
“Kevin is a good challenge. I like that. He has his skills. He throws the right hand, he throws a [fast] kick — those are the skills he has,” Fernandes said.
“You know what? I’m so glad of the number four, because I keep improving my stand-up against Kevin. I know if I have patience, I can finish him.”
Regardless of who ends up on top and reigns supreme in the bantamweight division on Sunday, one thing is for sure — this rivalry has brought out the best of each athlete, and a different outcome than expected would not be a surprise.
“Expect a smarter, stronger, and more confident Kevin Belingon. You can look out for a better performance from me.”
Catch ONE: Century, the biggest World Championship martial arts event in history. No organization has ever promoted two full-scale World Championship events in one day, with 28 World Champions competing in multiple World Title bouts.
PART I airs live at 11:00am Philippine Standard Time (PHT) on Sunday, 13 October. TV5 will cut-in to live broadcast 10:30 am.
PART II airs on ABS-CBN S+A or Cignal TV at 6:30pm Philippine Standard Time (PHT). TV5 will show the special delay live at 9:30pm PHT.
All preliminary matches air on ONE’s Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube accounts.
