ONE CHAMPIONSHIP: ‘REUG REUG’ FACES SOCIAL MEDIA RIVAL ‘BOUCHER KETCHUP’ BEFORE TITLE FIGHT
- Oumar Kane has faced criticism from champion Anatoly Malykhin before their title bout, while compatriot Mamadou Kamara has also taken swipes
Oumar Kane will face social media rival Mamadou Kamara in a kickboxing contest at ONE Fight Night 23, before taking on Anatoly Malykhin for the MMA heavyweight title in November.
Better known as "Reug Reug", Kane has been on the receiving end of snipes from both of his coming opponents in recent weeks.
Malykhin, who will put his belt on the line at ONE 169, was scathing about the Senegal fighter's ability when asked how he felt about their coming battle for his belt.
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"The only thing 'Reug Reug' really has going for him is his strength," Malykhin said. "Yeah, the guy's strong, and his balance ain't bad, but that's about it.
"He's slow, can't time punches for the life of him, and his cardio sucks. Three rounds and he's gassed, and this is a five-rounder. He usually falls apart after the first anyway - hands drop, starts grabbing at opponent's shorts or gloves. Kind of a dirty fighter, really. No real threat, though."
Their fight will take place in Atlanta, and Malykhin said he had a special treat in store for the local crowd.
"American fans love knockouts, right?" the Russian said. "They want a good show, fighters going all out, leaving it all in the cage. That's what I'm gonna give them: a knockout, a damn good fight."
And Malykhin was not the only fighter to take verbal shots at Kane, with Kamara, also from Senegal and known by his social media alias "Boucher Ketchup", taking to his Instagram page ahead of their kickboxing bout.
Kamara has almost 300,000 followers on Instagram and, like Kane, made himself into a local hero with success in Senegalese wrestling before transitioning to MMA.
The fight was confirmed only on Monday and came as a surprise with such a big fight on the horizon for Kane, whose last fight was in August when he beat Marcus Almeida by decision at ONE Fight Night 13.
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This article originally appeared on the South China Morning Post (www.scmp.com), the leading news media reporting on China and Asia.
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2024-07-02T10:07:26Z dg43tfdfdgfd
