Eduard Folayang to battle Aoki for the fourth time at ONE 172

The fourth chapter of the storied rivalry between mixed martial arts legends Eduard Folayang and Shinya Aoki is set to take centerstage once again when they duke it out at ONE 172 on March 23 at Saitama Super Arena in Japan.

Folayang, 23-13 as a professional MMA fighter, first became the ONE lightweight world champion when he scored a major upset against Aoki by defeating the latter via stoppage in 2016. They fought again twice and Aoki both won by submission in the first round.

Coming off a third-round technical knockout over Amir Khan last September 2023, Folayang is looking to score his second straight victory when he takes on the Japanese MMA legend.

Aoki, meanwhile, suffered a first-round submission loss in his grappling match against Cole Abate last December. His last MMA outing, however, was a dominant first-round submission over former world champion John Lineker in January 2024.

—JKC, GMA Integrated News