Three fights at ONE 171: Qatar that fans shouldn’t miss 

ONE 171: Qatar is almost here, packed with a superstar-filled card from the opening curtain to the headline attraction.  

All the action comes to a head this Thursday, February 20, inside Doha, Qatar’s Lusail Sports Arena. There, over a dozen bouts across four combat sports disciplines take centerstage in ONE Championship’s return to the Middle East.  

So with that, let’s take a closer look at three bouts you must watch at ONE 171.  

In welterweight MMA action, Dagi Arslanaliev returns to the fold to face revered knockout artist Roberto Soldic in a clash that has all the makings of an instant classic. 

Arslanaliev’s previous encounter saw him amass a record of 9-2 overall. All victories came by stoppage, with seven of those being knockouts. 

During that run, he also reached the ONE Lightweight MMA World Grand Prix Final. That moment included a 2021 Fight of the Year with Timofey Nastuykhin. And when he moves up to welterweight, he’ll look to remind everyone why he’s so dangerous. But Soldic has a similar plan. 

When signing with ONE, “Robocop” was the hottest free agent in the sport. The former two-weight KSW World Champion rose to superstardom in Europe with 17 knockouts in 20 wins – including knocking out reigning UFC Middleweight World Champion Dricus du Plessis. 

But after two underwhelming performances, Soldic hopes the third time’s a charm as he looks to reignite his promotional run.  

Also on the card is a bantamweight Muay Thai showdown between Jake Peacock and Shinji Suzuki that promises to be entertaining from start to finish. 

After winning Road to ONE: Canada, Peacock debuted at ONE Friday Fights 58 last April. He out-struck Kohei Shinjo in a one-sided masterclass.  

Meanwhile, Suzuki looks to upset the apple cart and show his veteran prowess. He recently gained momentum with a unanimous decision over Han Zi Hao, and he’ll look to utilize that dominant display to put Peacock’s momentum to bed.

Joshua Pacio vs. Jarred Brooks: The trilogy at ONE 171: Qatar

ONE strawweight MMA king Joshua Pacio and interim titleholder Jarred Brooks are more than familiar with one another. 

The duo have crossed paths twice before, with the scores tied at one win apiece. Brooks won the first clash at ONE 164 in December 2022 for the big gold belt. Whereas a disqualification loss for Brooks saw the belt return to Pacio in the rematch in March 2024 at ONE 166. 

A year on, the pair are ready for the third encounter where the World Title – and bragging rights – are all up for grabs as they look to settle the beef definitively.