Fabricio Andrade ‘believes’ he could beat the UFC’s dominant champion Merab Dvalishvili – and prove he’s the best bantamweight on the planet.
The ONE Championship titleholder returns to action at ONE Fight Night 38 in Bangkok on December 7, defending his belt against Mongolia’s Enkh-Orgil Baatarkhuu after another lengthy layoff.
Still just 28, Andrade feels the next stage of his career is about legacy – not only in ONE but globally.
‘I can still do a lot of things in MMA,’ told the Bangkok Post. ‘My goal is to put myself as the best bantamweight in the world. Right now I’m the champion in ONE. You always want to be the best in your division – this is my goal.
‘A lot of people talk about other promotions’ champions, but I think they also need to mention me. I defeated John Lineker, who was top three in UFC, and I beat him twice. So I think I should be considered one of the best in the world.’
Andrade praised Dvalishvili’s remarkable 2025 run, which included four title defences. Though a hypothetical cross-promotional match remains unlikely, he believes he could find a way to crack the Georgian’s code.
‘Of course, now we have a guy, Merab – nobody understands how to beat him. He’s probably the best bantamweight today,’ Andrade said. ‘If I say, ‘It’s gonna be easy,’ I’d be crazy. But I believe in myself. To beat a guy like him, you need a very good strategy and to work very hard – but I have to believe I’m the best bantamweight in the world.
‘If one day I had the opportunity to fight him, I’d say I would win – because I believe in myself.’
For now, his focus is on defending his belt in style – and doing so against a wrestler will give him the chance to showcase his evolving ground game.
‘I’ve been fighting more strikers, so now I can show my grappling skills too,’ he said. ‘If I finish him, it would be a good win and then I’m in that conversation [for best in the world].’
It will be Andrade’s first fight since January, when he blitzed South Korea’s Kwon Won Il in just 42 seconds at ONE 170 inside Impact Arena. That was his first bout in 15 months – and his first title defence – and he’s determined not to let another year slip by.
‘It’s not ideal to stay so long waiting, but finally I’ve got a fight,’ Andrade added. ‘He’s a good opponent coming off good wins. I just want to fight and defend my belt. It doesn’t matter who it is – I’m going to finish them.’
Andrade remains open to future challenges, including a long-discussed showdown with Stephen Loman or even a crossover fight with Jonathan Haggerty, who once teased a move into MMA after beating Andrade for the vacant kickboxing belt.
‘I’d like to fight Loman, but you can’t go for the belt after a loss,’ Andrade said. ‘He needs to get a win first – but he’s a deserving opponent, and once he does, that fight makes sense.
‘If Haggerty starts fighting MMA, he could be a potential opponent – but you can’t go straight for the title without fighting first. Give him an MMA debut, then it’s easy to make it happen.’
For now, the ‘Wonder Boy’ just wants to stay active.
‘I want to fight three times a year – that would be perfect – but I’m going to need more opponents,’ he said. ‘I’m the champion here, I’ll defend this belt many times again, and I’m going to keep putting my name out there.’