By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña
Stephen Loman is training hard for his ONE Championship debut as he is set to square off against the no.1 ranked fighter in the bantamweight division, John “Hands of Stone” Lineker.
Coming off a stellar run in BRAVE CF and being hailed as the undisputed bantamweight champion for years, the upcoming challenge of taking on Lineker will put his training to the test.
“I’m preparing for the best John Lineker possible. Right now, we are focused on every aspect this fight could turn, whether that be in grappling, wrestling, or striking. We have to be prepared for every scenario,” Loman said.
Aside from impressing in his first ONE fight, the young Loman is also seeking for revenge after Lineker knocked out another team Lakay star in Kevin Belingon.
Belingon, ONE’s former bantamweight champion, was not able to handle Lineker’s power and went down in the second round after receiving tons of power hits to the head and to the mid-section.
Supervised by team Lakay head trainer coach Mark Sangiao, Loman and his camp are currently figuring out the perfect game plan to try and take away Lineker’s power in the match.
“My senior, Kevin Belingon and Coach Mark Sangiao are helping me with the game plan heading into this fight. We’re analyzing and studying, coming up with the right approach to apply. Lineker is no doubt one of the toughest opponents in my career. If I can beat him, it will be huge,” Loman shared.
The Loman-Lineker bout will be the main event in the upcoming ONE TNT III and will determine the next challenger for current champion Bibiano Fernandes.
