Rivalries: Lipeng Zhang

Chinese professional mixed martial arts veteran Lipeng Zhang’s career represents the exemplification of persistent growth that combat star hopefuls can look up to. Zhang has endured four instances of back-to-back losses, yet it has been almost nine years since he has been enmeshed in a predicament of that sort. The globetrotting combatant will square off against surging 24-year-old MMA phenom Maurice Abevi in a featured ONE on Prime Video 22 attraction this Friday at Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand.

As Zhang makes final preparations for the showdown with Abevi under the ONE Championship banner, a look at a few of the rivalries that have helped shape his journey thus far:

Brendan O’Reilly

Zhang, winner of “The Ultimate Fighter China” in 2013, picked up his first Ultimate Fighting Championship win over O’Reilly at UFC Fight Night 48. In the first round, both fighters tested the waters. O’Reilly managed to force a takedown but ended up on his back when Zhang reversed the position. From there, he delivered solid ground-and-pound, and he continued the onslaught in the subsequent round. After that, it was all Zhang, who threatened with a rear-naked choke in the second and opened up a bloody mouth wound on his opponent in the final frame. In the end, the judges scored the bout 29-28, 30-27 and 30-27 in favor of “The Warrior.”

Beibit Nazarov

Having compiled a 3-0 run under the Kunlun Fight, one of the top kickboxing promotions in the world, Zhang went on to challenge Nazarov for the organization’s welterweight MMA championship. Before that fight, Zhang was on a four-fight submission run over the likes of Young Ki Hong and Gadzhimusa Gaziev. He won the fight against Nazarov via unanimous decision and laid claim to the organization’s 165-pound championship.

Eduard Folayang

Between October 2015 and September 2019, Zhang fought extensively under the Kunlun Fight banner and went on to make his ONE Championship debut against Folayang following a hiatus of almost two years. The Chinese MMA veteran scored a hard-earned victory in this lightweight encounter at ONE Battleground 2, where he secured a unanimous decision win over “Landslide.” Zhang harnessed the competency of his grappling adeptness and disguised it behind pressure striking to secure the decisive win. Folayang had his moments in the first round, where he opened up with a series of chopping low kicks to the thig and then rattled his opponent with punches to the body and an overhand right. However, “The Warrior” quickly closed the distance and put an immediate halt to the Filipino’s offense with his wrestling prowess. Folayang mounted some solid offense in the latter stages, but Zhang’s body of work across the stretch earned him the unanimous decision nod from the judges.

Timofey Nastyukhin

Zhang faced Nastyukhin on Oct. 6, 2023 at ONE on Prime Video 15. “The Warrior” opened up with thudding leg kicks while Nastyukhin pressured to score a takedown. Zhang managed to fend off the attempt after being taken down briefly. It became readily apparent that Zhang had the advantage on the feet, and after briefly suffocating his opponent with insistent propulsion, he landed an overhand right that staggered Nastyukhin. From there, he pounded out the finish at the 3:18 mark of the first round.