WHEN Ev “E.T” Ting returns to Kuala Lumpur for ONE: MASTERS OF DESTINY, expect the former ONE Lightweight World Title challenger to produce another memorable performance in front of his home crowd.
The Auckland-based Malaysian is eager to climb his way back up the lightweight rankings, and he believes finishing Pancrase Welterweight World Champion Daichi Abe at the Axiata Arena on Friday, 12 July will put him on solid footing.
“Finishing him in the first round will be ideal,” the 29-year-old admitted.
“I’ll be seeking for it every second of the 300 in each round. Daichi’s dangerous everywhere, but I have trained hard, and I’m ready for this match.”
Abe desperately wants to get his career back on track after suffering a 33-second knockout to Brazil’s Luis Santos in his ONE Championship debut.
This clash will be his first match in the lightweight division, something “E.T.” feels could leave his adversary with more things to work on ahead of their three-round affair.
“Daichi will have a challenging time preparing for this contest in a lighter weight class,” Ting continued.
“However, we’ve improved the program we had here against Nobutatsu Suzuki in Auckland MMA.”
Ting’s first-round knockout of Suzuki in August 2017 still remains one of his best performances to date. But besides that showcase, the New Zealand-based Malaysian has never failed to light up the capital city with similar displays of excellence.
In his nine Kuala Lumpur appearances, he has won seven by way of submission or knockout. Some of it came against tough opponents like Edward Kelly, Honorio Banario, and Rob Lisita.
Although “E.T.” is riding the only two-bout skid of his career, he is determined to turn it around next month.
“Going 10-0 in Malaysia is my mission on 12 July. As always, I’ll be giving it 200 percent,” he stated before promising martial arts enthusiasts in the region that they’re in for another ‘Ev Ting special.’
“It’s always an honor to compete in my birth town, and to represent Malaysia and New Zealand’s mixed martial arts scene. It’s been a long time coming.”
