Manila Gearing Up for Debut of ONE Super Series at ONE: Heroes of Honor

While the Philippine capital is abuzz with the announcement of the main event showdown between Team Lakay’s Kevin “The Silencer” Belingon (17-5) and Bali-based American Andrew Leone (8-3), another spectacle is ready to be unveiled at the Mall of Asia Arena.

Making its debut on 20 April at ONE: HEROES OF HONOR is the highly-anticipated ONE Super Series, a new iteration in ONE Championship’s efforts to bring martial arts to the forefront in mainstream culture.

According to ONE Championship Chairman and CEO Chatri Sityodtong, the ONE Super Series aims to provide the world's best martial artists a prestigious global platform to showcase the beauty of Asia's striking arts such as Muay Thai, kickboxing, karate, taekwondo, Kung Fu, wushu, sanda, silat, lethwei, and more.

It will feature various-styled bouts under ONE Championship’s unique rule sets, including kickboxing and Muay Thai, some in the ring, some in the cage, and with ONE Championship branded boxing or grappling gloves. It’s an exciting development in the professional martial arts landscape that could have a lasting effect on the future of the sport.

The premiere offering for Manila’s ONE Super Series is a battle featuring international kickboxing superstar Giorgio Petrosyan of Italy, who takes on 25-year-old “Smokin’” Jo Nattawut of Thailand.

The 32-year-old Petrosyan is known as one of the finest kickboxing talents in the world. He began his professional Muay Thai career at the age of 16 competing between bantamweight and middleweight, winning multiple titles across each division.

With a professional kickboxing record of 85-2-2, 2NC, Petrosyan is known for his incredible 6-year 42-bout win streak which is considered one of the most dominant reigns in middleweight history.

On the other hand, Nattawut is a kickboxing star from Atlanta, Georgia with a professional kickboxing record of 60-11-2. Originally from Korat, Thailand, Nattawut is a former Lion Fight Super Welterweight Champion and WMC Champion, known for his powerful elbow and knee strikes.

Aside from the marquee talent debuting at ONE Super Series in Manila, is the unveiling of a brand new ONE Super Series five-rope ring. Up until this point, ONE Championship has held martial arts bouts inside the famed ONE cage, but at ONE: HEROES OF HONOR, a new battlefield will be revealed.

Specifications and details have yet to be announced, but all bouts are expected to be held inside the new ring, including bouts that are officiated under ONE’s Global Rule Set. This means that, for the first time in ONE Championship history, Mixed Martial Arts contests will be held in the ring instead of in the cage.

This is a huge development and one that could be a potential game-changer. The ring is set to be unveiled in the coming weeks, with select media getting the opportunity to have a first-look before the arena doors open to the public.

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For more updates on ONE Championship, please visit www.onefc.com, follow us on Twitter and Instagram @ONEChampionship, and like us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/ONEChampionship.

About ONE Championship™

ONE Championship is the largest global sports media property in Asian history. Headquartered in Singapore, ONE Championship is the home of martial arts and is the world's largest martial arts organization, hosting bouts across all styles of martial arts such as Muay Thai, Kickboxing, Karate, Kung Fu, Silat, Sanda, Lethwei, Mixed Martial Arts, Tae Kwon Do, Submission Grappling, and more. The world’s most exciting martial arts organization hosts the largest sports entertainment events across Asia, featuring some of the world's best martial artists and world champions, all signed to exclusive contracts, on the largest media broadcast in Asia. In addition to its digital platforms, ONE Championship broadcasts to over 1.7-billion potential viewers across 136 countries around the world with some of the largest global broadcasters, including Fox Sports, ABS-CBN, Astro, ClaroSports, Bandsports, Startimes, Premier Sports, Thairath TV, Skynet, Mediacorp, OSN, and more.

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Animax Heats Up the Summer with Three All New Same Day As Japan Anime Series this April!

Usher in an exhilarating summer of fantasy and the supernatural this April with three brand new anime series – KAKURIYO -Bed & Breakfast for Spirits-, Dances with the Dragons, and The Seven Deadly Sins -Revival of the Commandments- – all showing on Animax on the same day as Japan!

KAKURIYO -Bed & Breakfast for Spirits-

College student Aoi, who prides herself on her cooking skills, has inherited her late grandfather’s ability to see spirits. While feeding spirits one day, a god appears before her, claiming that Aoi’s grandfather owes him a great debt. In order to repay the debt, he is now claiming Aoi as his bride. Adamant in her refusal to go along with this plan, Aoi decides that the best way to pay off the debt is to work at Tenjinya, an inn owned by the god himself…

KAKURIYO -Bed & Breakfast for Spirits- premieres April 2, Mondays at 11PM, same day as Japan, first and exclusively on Animax.

Dances with the Dragons

In a world replete with dragons and spell formulas known as Jushiki, the unlucky sorcerer Gayus joins forces with the handsome but cruel Jushiki practitioner Gigina as a pair of bounty hunters who pursue dragons. One day, they are presented with an odd request to serve as security guards for a grand festival. It is then that a mysterious killing spree of Jushiki sorcerers begins…

Dances with the Dragons premieres April 6, Fridays at 11PM, same day as Japan, first and exclusively on Animax.

The Seven Deadly Sins -Revival of the Commandments-

Peace has been restored in the Kingdom of Leones and restoration of the country to its former glory is underway. However, a new kind of evil looms as an elite team of Demon Clan warriors known as the Ten Commandments awakens from their seal and threatens to destroy the world. Amidst their own personal struggles, will the Seven Deadly Sins be able to stop them? A battle of seismic proportions is about to begin!

The Seven Deadly Sins -Revival of the Commandments- premieres April 14, Saturday, 3.30PM, 12 episodes back-to-back. Subsequent episodes air on Saturdays, 9.30PM, same day as Japan, first and exclusively on Animax.

Animax is available on SKYCable Channel 46, Cignal Channel 73, Dream Satellite TV Channel 07, Destiny Digital Channel 46 and G Sat Channel 24.

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About Animax Asia

Launched on 1 January 2004, Animax is Asia’s first channel brand specializing in Japanese animation
– anime. Animax offers a wide variety of anime programs from across the most popular genres including action, romance, horror, supernatural, sci-fi, comedy and slice-of-life.
Animax is home to some of the biggest anime titles in the world that enjoy great following across the region. In addition, the channel created TV history in April 2009 by becoming the world’s first regional broadcaster to air an anime series at the same time as Japan and followed that with six other simulcast anime series. Currently reaching 58 million homes across 17 markets in Asia, Animax aims to offer anime programming for everyone.
Beyond television screens, Animax also actively engages its audiences at local events, including its signature Animax Carnival that has rolled out in Malaysia, the Philippines, and Taiwan. See www.animax-asia.com for more.

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Crashing Bantamweight Title Picture is in Andrew Leon*e’s Crosshairs

After falling short in his bid to become a world champion in the sport nearly eight months ago, former world title challenger Andrew Leone is brimming with eagerness to redeem himself as he kicks off his 2018 with a marquee match-up versus a celebrated Filipino dynamo.

Leone is slated to lock horns with Team Lakay’s Kevin Belingon in the main event of ONE: HEROES OF HONOR, which takes place at the 20,000-seater SM Mall of Asia Arena in Manila, Philippines on 20 April.

“I love Asia. I’ve been living and competing here for a very long time. I’ve been to different countries and cities, including Manila. Manila is a special place because it’s where I had my promotional debut for ONE Championship,” he said.

“It’s great to have my first match for 2018 in Manila. It feels like I’ve gone full circle,” Leone quipped.

Leone, an eight-year mixed martial arts veteran who dynamically carved his niche in the Asian combat scene, seems destined to be a world champion after making waves in the organization when he debuted with a victory over Belingon’s teammate and future ONE Interim Flyweight World Champion Geje Eustaquio in May 2013.

Ever since his maiden appearance in ONE Championship, the 28-year-old native of Cortland, New York has strung together two solid victories over high-level opponents inside the cage.

For a highly-decorated competitor like Leone, who trains alongside some of the most talented combat sports athletes in Asia at the renowned Bali MMA gym in Bali, Indonesia, it took him four arduous years to get a crack at ONE Championship’s prestigious bantamweight crown.

“There were moments in my career when I was already near to the title shot, but suddenly I lost the momentum due to circumstances that were beyond my control. I really pushed myself very hard to reach the top. Finally after four years, I had the chance to vie for the world title,” he shared.

Leone challenged Bibiano Fernandes for the ONE Bantamweight World Championship in August 2017, but he yielded to the Brazilian legend via first-round submission.

“It was a tough loss. I worked very hard for that bout, and I only lasted for almost two minutes inside the cage with him. I believe I could have done more against Bibiano Fernandes, but it is what it is,” he recalled.

Leone affirmed that he still has gold on his mind, revealing that he views his upcoming meeting with Belingon as a chance to throw himself back into the world title mix.

“I heard Kevin Belingon was supposed to be next in line for the title, but the promotion had other plans. Winning the title is my happy ending in this journey. If I win this, I know I will be in a great position to face Bibiano for the title again,” he stated.

Belingon has won four-straight contests since October 2016, including scintillating triumphs over ex-bantamweight title contenders such as Toni Tauru and Reece McLaren.

The 30-year-old Baguio City resident desperately wants a second shot at the ONE Bantamweight World Championship after being submitted by Fernandes in January 2016.

Against a stand-up specialist like Belingon, there are clear areas where Leone sees that he has an advantage and will be looking to capitalize, including the exuberance of youth.

"I’m a lot younger. I think I’m faster, I’ve got some good scrambling, and I’m a little bit taller," he explained. "I’m going to get there in and just wrestle him. I see a lot of different positions coming up that I’m going to take advantage of and come out on top.”

According to Leone, his warpath back to the ONE Bantamweight World Championship picture commences on 20 April.

“A win in this match will definitely put me in line for a rematch against Bibiano. I want that title shot again. If Kevin Belingon is blocking my way to earn that spot, I have to take him out. I will give everything I’ve got,” he ended.

​For more updates on ONE Championship, please visit www.onefc.com, follow us on Twitter and Instagram @ONEChampionship, and like us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/ONEChampionship.​

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