Ben Askren Finally Set to Defend his ONE Championship Welterweight Title | MMAWeekly.com

Undefeated welterweight Ben Askren is likely to be back in action on Dec. 17, when he will defend his title at a ONE Championship card in Bangkok. That’s according to CEO Victor Cui, who was interviewed by The Independent newspaper in England this week.

Askren (15-0-0-1) was last seen scoring a unanimous decision win over Nikolay Aleksakhin in April. He is one of ONE Championship’s biggest stars. Putting him on the Bangkok card would demonstrate how serious the promotion is about expanding its presence in Thailand.

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The show will be the second to take place at the Impact Arena. The first event was held in May and featured Thai fighters Dejdamrong Sor Amnuaysirichoke, Shannon Wiratchai, Pongsiri Mitsatit, Yodsanan Sityodtong, and Kritsada Kongsrichai.

The obvious choice of opponent for Askren would be Luis Santos (63-9-1-1). The first fight between the two men ended in a controversial no contest with the Brazilian complaining he had been poked in the eye.

Santos has since won two fights and remains the number one contender in the division, but reportedly suffered a serious knee injury during a decision win over Igor Svirid in August. There is also the possibility reigning middleweight champion Vitaly Bigdash might decide to move down in weight.