Reinier de Ridder is no longer a ONE Championship fighter after parting ways with the promotion and joining UAE Warriors, MMA Fighting confirmed Tuesday.
De Ridder faces Magomedmurad Khasaev in a light heavyweight contest for his promotional debut on the July 27 show in Abu Dhabi.
De Ridder (16-2) made a name for himself in Asia by winning seven straight ONE bouts between 2019 and 2022, and capturing the promotion’s middleweight and light heavyweight belts. He lost both titles to Anatoly Malykhin in his most recent appearances.
“The Dutch Knight,” who turns 34 in September, holds submission wins over the likes of Aung La N Sang, Vitaly Bigdash, and Kiamrian Abbasov.
Khasaev (6-1) earned all of his MMA victories by knockout, including his ONE debut against Arash Mardani in 2023. His lone loss came in a submission to one-time ONE title challenger Agilan Thani this past August.
UAE Warriors 51 airs live on UFC Fight Pass and features Amru Magomedov defending his lightweight title against Ali Kabdulla. Magomedov is a teammate of UFC lightweight champion Islam Makhachev and UFC Hall of Famer Khabib Nurmagomedov.
UAE Warriors 52: Arabia 14 takes place the following day in Abu Dhabi, with Kevin Oumar vs. Mohamed Juma as the headliner.