Reug Reug gets ONE Championship debut vs. Alain Ngalani

Senegalese wrestling sensation, Oumar “Reug Reug” Kane (1-0) is on his way to ONE Championship.

It was initially reported in late December that Reug Reug had signed with the Singapore-based promotion. For his likely debut, he was expected to face off with BJJ wizard, Marcus “Buchecha” Almeida.

As of Monday, South China Morning Post’s Nick Atkin reported that instead, the heavyweight prospect will be welcomed by the 4-5 (1 NC) Alain Ngalani. The bout is expected to take place at ONE’s first event of 2021 on Jan. 29 — it’s ONE: Unbreakable II.

Per source, Hong Kong's Alain Ngalani will fight Oumar "Reug Reug" Kane at ONE Championship: Unbreakable II at heavyweight in Singapore, which will be broadcast on January 29. pic.twitter.com/8vXYfmmItJ

— Nicolas Atkin (@nicatkinONE) January 12, 2021

Cameroon’s Ngalani, 45, has spent the entirety of his MMA career competing under the ONE banner. His biggest opportunity to date came in 2017 opposite the eventual reigning middleweight and light heavyweight king, Aung La N Sang.

More recently, Ngalani has been linked to a potential matchup with former UFC champion Vitor Belfort. “The Phenom” signed with the organization in March 2019 and has yet to make his debut.

In the case of Reug Reug, 28, he burst onto the scene in 2019 when he made his professional debut for Ares Fighting Championship. Welcoming him to the sport in December of that year would be the 6-3 Sofiane Boukichou. Ultimately, Reug Reug lived up to expectations for his rookie outing as he earned a second-round TKO.

“I’ve felt very happy after fighting and winning on my mixed martial arts debut,” the heavyweight told BJPenn.com in June 2020. “But as my manager always says, we have lots of things in front of us. It was nice to win, though, especially at home, in front of my people.”

The entire ONE: Unbreakable II lineup as it currently stands can be seen below.

• Bantamweight – 145lbs: Kickboxing: (C)Alaverdi Ramazanov vs. Capitan Petchyindee Academy
• Lightweight – 170lbs: Shinya Aoki vs. James Nakashima
• Heavyweight – 225lbs-265lbs: Kickboxing: Rade Opacic vs. Patrick Schmid
• Welterweight – 185lbs: Zebaztian Kadestam vs. Gadzhimurad Abdulavaev
• Atomweight – 115lbs: Meng Bo vs. Samara Santos
• Strawweight – 125lbs: Hexigetu vs. Lito Adiwang
• Heavyweight: Alain Ngalani vs. Oumar “Reug Reug” Kane