“It would be great” - Enkh-Orgil Baatarkhuu dreams of making his first world title defense at home in Mongolia

Newly crowned ONE bantamweight MMA world champion Enkh-Orgil Baatarkhuu said it would be an honor and a privilege to have his first title defense held in his home turf of Mongolia.

He made this known in an interview with combat sports journalist Nick Atkin following his successful conquest of the bantamweight MMA world title from former divisional king Fabricio Andrade at ONE Fight Night 38 on December 5 at the Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand.

Baatarkhuu, a native of Khovd, shared that it is going to be a perfect setting to have him defend his world title in front of his hometown fans, just as he expressed his readiness for all-comers for the bantamweight gold.

He said:

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"Yeah, of course, like if ONE Championship organized the next event, the next title defense event back in Ulaanbaatar here, of course, it would be great. And personally, I am not that interested in fighting the person I beat over and over, you know. I think it is kind of boring to the audience. And I also have other plans to do, you know. So I will see."

Check out what he had to say below:

In seizing the bantamweight gold from Andrade at ONE Fight Night 38, Baatarkhuu steadily tore down his opponent, culminating in a well-executed submission by way of a rear-naked choke in the fourth round. The impressive win, his fourth straight and seventh in eight matches in ONE Championship, also earned him a $50,000 performance bonus from ONE Chairman and CEO Chatri Sityodtong.

North American fans can catch the replay of all the action at ONE Fight Night 38 on demand via Amazon Prime Video.

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Enkh-Orgil Baatarkhuu earns ONE contract in Mongolia

In the event that Enkh-Orgil Baatarkhuu's title defense happens in Mongolia, it will be a full circle moment for him. It was there that he earned his ONE Championship contract three years ago.

The Shandas MMA/Team Tungaa standout participated in the "Road to ONE - Mongolia," which was done in cooperation with Steppe Arena, in 2022. He emerged as the winner of the competition, with his prize a $100,000 contract to be part of the main roster of the 'Home of Martial Arts'.

Since then, he has had continued success, making his way up the ONE bantamweight MMA lane, further taking it to another level with his title conquest at ONE Fight Night 38.

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Edited by Saiyed Adeem Karim