Latest news with #Soldic
South China Morning Post
03-05-2025
- Sport
- South China Morning Post
Croat Soldic eyes Lee's ONE welterweight title after Kadestam's ‘crazy' weigh-in failure
Roberto Soldic wants a shot at Christian Lee's ONE Championship MMA welterweight title after Zebaztian Kadestam missed weight by a massive 4.5kg in Bangkok on Friday. Advertisement The Swedish former champion was expected to face Isi Fitikefu at ONE Fight Night 31 in what was widely considered a title eliminator. But the bout was cancelled after Kadestam weighed in at 88.5kg – considerably more than the welterweight limit. 'It's just crazy,' Soldic told the Post. 'I've never seen anything like this. 4.5kg is too much. That's like two divisions heavier already. I was shocked.' In an Instagram post soon after the weigh-in, the 29-year-old mocked Kadestam. Advertisement 'Former world champion takes off his pants at 88.5kg, thinks it's 100 grams … this is crazy,' he said. 'The fight has been postponed. I'm the next challenger for the belt.' Soldic also posted a video of himself successfully making weight, with the caption: 'Discipline is doing what you hate to do, but doing it like you love it.'
USA Today
20-02-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
ONE 171 video: Roberto Soldic sends unconscious opponent airborne with brutal knockout
It was nearly two years between fights for Roberto Soldic when he stepped into the ONE 171 cage Thursday. His return didn't even last two minutes. In what was one of 2025's most violent MMA sequences, Soldic (21-4) blasted opponent Dagi Arslanaliev airborne with a big left hand. Arslanaliev (9-3) slammed unconsciously to the canvas face-first where he was met with big follow-up punches. The stoppage came at 1:55 of Round 1. Soldic, 30, had not competed since May 2023. He is a former KSW double c champion and remains the only man to hold a knockout win over current UFC middleweight champion Dricus Du Plessis. The victory Thursday was his first under the ONE banner since he signed with the promotion in 2022. A coveted free agent acquisition, Soldic was unable to pocket wins in either of his first two appearances. His debut ended in a groin strike no contest and he was knocked out by underdog Zebaztian Kadestam in his second promotional apperance. Prior to the fight, Soldic told MMA Junkie that he felt he reinvented himself during his time away from competition and hoped to remain more active moving forward.
USA Today
19-02-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
'Robocop' repaired: Roberto Soldic shifts into new gear ahead of long-awaited ONE 171 return
'Robocop' is in a new gear. With confidence he's new and improved, Roberto Soldic returns Thursday at ONE 171 with the hope of quickly shaking the ghosts of his first two promotional appearances. It's been a minute since he competed. Well, it's been more than a minute. It's actually been 21 months since Soldic (20-4) was knocked out by Zebaztian Kadestam in May 2023 – a shocking upset. With nearly two more years of training and improving under his belt, Soldic, 30, aims to once again raise his reputation to that of what it was when he was one of the hottest free agents available in early 2023. 'I had so many opportunities after KSW,' Soldic recently told MMA Junkie. 'It was a really tough time for me in my career to decide where to go. Sometimes in life when too much opportunities (present), it's not good also. I don't know what to do. UFC called me. ONE Championship. KSW wanted that I stay there. For the mental thing, I think this was a really hard, hard time to decide what is good to choose. But I don't see anything wrong with ONE.' Soldic's debut was underwhelming, as he was kneed in the groin by Murad Ramazanov and their bout was stopped just past the two-minute mark. With the encore against Kadestam be a knockout loss, Soldic understands the doubters are more populous. 'Sadly, in the beginning against Murad (Ramazanov), people talk like I lost the fight,' Soldic said. 'It's a no contest. The guy threw a hard knee in the groin and I couldn't continue. Sadly also after the Murad fight, six months later I had a fight with the former champion, former ONE champion Zebaztian (Kadestam). I can say I rushed. The first round I got him a couple times, and I want so hard to finish him. I use only my one weapon, the left hand. I didn't use everything I can get. I know I have more weapons in my skillset. I made a mistake. I threw the left hand to the body, and he caught me with a perfect elbow. 'I can say that out of 100 times, he do that one time maybe. I don't know. On that night, God was on his side. What can I say? You can see Demetrious (Johnson), also. He moved to ONE, he lost to former champion, even he with 12 or 13 UFC title defenses. Anything can happen on this level. The guys are really, really skilled and they are dangerous so I have to now have a chance to change this on Feb. 20 against a really tough guy, Saygid Guseyn Arslanaliev. I'm really well prepared and with a new game plan and patience. I'll take this win.' But Soldic thinks he's identified the mistakes and the holes in his game have been patched up. He plans to finally get that long sought-after first ONE win Thursday vs. Saygid Guseyn Arslanaliev (9-2). 'I'll try to bring good performance with patience in a smart way,' Soldic said. 'It's not easy. It's a tough, tough sport. I have to do this to prove the people are wrong. Always guys comment this, that. I try to finish hard guys. That's it. This is my job. This is what I like. I am healthy. Thank God everything is on point from now and I'm ready to compete.' 'He's also an aggressive fighter with a 9-2 record. All his life, he was in ONE Championship. He lost to Christian, who is a ONE champion. He's been two years off. But he only lose to good guys, those two fights, two losses. In ONE Championship everyone is a good fighter. I accepted a really tough fight and I prepared for this. I know I can beat this guy and I never choose any opponent. My manager told me that guy, I sign. They told me Murad Ramazonov, I sign. they gave me a former champion, I sign. It doesn't matter to me. I want to compete. I want to be the best. If you want to be the best, you've got to beat the best. So I accepted a tough fight and I'm ready for it.
Sport360
13-02-2025
- Sport
- Sport360
Dagi Arslanaliev looking to take Roberto Soldic into deep waters at ONE 171: Qatar
Turkey's Dagi Arslanaliev has spoken of his excitement to fight in Qatar for the first time – and how taking opponent Roberto Soldic into the latter rounds will help him score an important win. The 30-year-old is now enjoying the fruits of what is quite literally a lifetime of fighting. Raised from the age of five in a combat sports focussed boarding school, there was only one career path he was going to go on. Skilled in grappling, wushu, and Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, Arslanaliev claimed titles across Eastern Europe before making his MMA debut in 2014. He now boasts a 9-2 pro-MMA record, with four of those wins coming since his ONE Championship debut in 2018. On that day he got people's attention when he starched Timofey Nastyukhin inside two minutes – their rematch three years later would win ONE's Fight of the Year award – and once again it was Dagi who came out on top. Always a dangerous figure in the lightweight division, Arslanaliev has only lost in ONE MMA to Christian Lee, and he now finds himself up against the hardy Roberto Soldic, looking to knock on Champion Lee's door once again. And while respecting his German opponent, Arslaniev does see much to worry him ahead of their ONE 171: Qatar bout at the Lusail Arena next week. 'Maybe Soldic is a very tough guy, but I haven't seen anything particularly dangerous from him,' he said. 'I'll just work hard and see how things go. I don't really focus too much on his strengths or weaknesses—I just do my job.' Soldic has dropped down a weight category to take this fight – but for Arslanaliev, this has no bearing on the outcome. 'It doesn't matter what weight he's at. When we step into the cage, it's just him and me. His supporters and mine stay outside. Whether he moves up or down, it won't affect the fight. The Turkish fighter has employed no special training for Soldic – just his usual pre-fight campaign, and a readiness to take things deep in the fight – giving the crowd what they have come to expect from this explosive fighter. 'I am preparing in the usual way, just as I always prepare for a good opponent. I prefer to focus on my boxing in particular. 'I can't predict what will happen in the fight, and I won't make any statements because I don't know how things will unfold. My plan is simple: to work off my opponent, capitalize on his mistakes, and keep active the whole time. If the finish comes early, I'll do my best to make it happen. For me, it would be better to take the fight to the later rounds. That way, when my opponent tires, I can show something special for the audience.' Speaking of that audience, Arslanaliev can look forward to some boisterous support at the Lusail Arena as he fights on Middle East soil for the first time. 'I'm very pleased to have the chance to fight in the Middle East and for people to fly in and watch,' he said. 'This will be my first fight in Qatar, and I'm excited to meet the Qatari audience. 'To my fans around the world: after a long time, I'm back in the cage. I'm ready to showcase the full arsenal of skills I've built up over the years.' You can watch Dagi Arslanaliev and Roberto Soldic collide at ONE 171: Qatar, which takes place on Thursday February 20th at 5pm Mecca at the Lusail Sports Arena in Qatar. For ticket information, click here. Alternatively, you can watch the event live on BeIn Sports or at
