OK Rae Yoon and Alibeg Rasulov Elevated to Main Event of ONE Fight Night 23, ONE Interim Lightweight MMA World Title Now on the Line

With just two weeks to go before ONE Fight Night 23 on Prime Video, the event is getting a new main event. 

The bout between Ok Rae Yoon and Alibeg Rasulov has been elevated to the featured bout of the card, as they will now be battling it out for the ONE Interim Lightweight MMA World Championship inside the iconic Lumpine Boxing Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand on Friday, July 5. 

Ok Rae Yoon and Alibeg Rasulov will fight in the main event

The event was originally set to be headlined by a match for the inaugural ONE Women’s Strawweight Kickboxing World Title between Jackie Buntan and Anissa “C18” Meksen. However, Filipino-American striker Buntan revealed that she suffered an injury in training and will not be able to compete on the card. Unfortunately, with the limited amount of time, there will be no replacement fighter for the 26-year-old, which means Meksen will also not be competing in the card. 

Ok and Rasulov’s showdown was set as the penultimate bout of the card and will now be put on the spotlight with much bigger stakes. Reigning ONE Lightweight and Welterweight MMA World Champion Christian “The Warrior” Lee has expressed his desire to defend both his belts soon, which would be perfect timing for an interim belt to be introduced.

South Korean slugger Ok is the last man who held the prestigious strap and he is also responsible for Lee’s only loss since losing to Filipino featherweight Edward Kelly back in September 2018. Ok was also the top-ranked fighter in the division which makes him an ideal challenger for the interim belt.

His list of conquests in the world’s largest martial arts organization includes huge names like former ONE Featherweight MMA World Champion Marat Gafurov, MMA veteran Eddie “The Underground King” Alvarez, and Lee. In his last outing, he got back to the win column by defeating American fighter Lowen Tynanes, which further proves why he is one of the top lightweights in the roster. 

The Turkish fighter gets a golden chance at the featured fight

Meanwhile, Alibeg suddenly has a golden opportunity in his promotional debut. The Turkish star is undefeated in 14 fights with 10 finishes to his name, dominating the competitive regional circuit while fighting in Russia, Turkey, and Azerbaijan, among others. His arrival in ONE is certainly a step up in competition, and the opportunity to win gold in his first match could instantly vault his career to unprecedented heights. 

The winner of the new main event will earn a shot at unifying the division’s top prize once Lee is back in action.