MANILA, Philippines — New ONE bantamweight world champion Fabricio Andrade (9-2) already has a new opponent in his sights just moments after clinching the crown, Team Lakay's Stephen Loman (16-2).
An emotional Andrade called out the Filipino fighter shortly after beating John Lineker in ONE Fight Night 7 in Bangkok on Saturday.
"You all know we got a contender in line. Loman, you want this? Come get it." Andrade said.
Andrade was crowned in what some would call a delayed win over Lineker as he finally clinched the belt in their second meeting via TKO before the final round could start due to corner stoppage.
In their initial meeting in October 2022, Andrade looked to be winning the bout before an accidental knee to the groin rendered Lineker unable to continue leading to the bout being deemed as a no contest.
Now as he begins his reign, Andrade eyes a quick turnaround against Loman who was also a bantamweight champion in his previous promotion.
Andrade also expressed his joy in bagging the championship after months of waiting.
"I have no words to explain what this means to me, you know? It's been like such a long journey, so many hard things that I've been through in my life with the dream to get here and become world champion to be able to change my life and my family's life you know? It's unbelievable. I don't know how to explain how I'm feeling." he said.
Loman, who began his journey with ONE Championship in 2021, is 3-0 so far in the Singapore promotion.
The Baguio-based fighter cemented his position as a contender for the crown when he scored a unanimous decision win over former champion Bibiano Fernandes in ONE Fight Night 4 in November last year.