Oumar Kane wasn’t given the credit or respect many other standouts or champions get when they transition from their respective combat sport to MMA. Fair or not, it didn’t matter in the end.
‘Reug Reug’ was one of the best in his own field prior to taking up MMA in late 2019. The Senegal-born fighter had an undefeated record of 16-0 in “lutte avec frappe”, a sand-arena wrestling style, and was built like The Hulk himself.
Yet, compared to Henry Cejudo, Bo Nickal, Rodolfo Vieira, and many other standout grapplers, championship potential wasn’t much of a point of conversation around him. It was all about Kane’s (5-1) crazy physique and freak, Pride-FC-like matchups he could provide for ONE Championship’s ratings.
To start his MMA career, like most newcomers, Kane was matched up against relatively low-level fighters with little experience or poor records. He showed great takedowns, devastating ground-and-pound, and a good understanding of the game. Over time, he escalated in competition, lost, bounced back, and went on to beat then undefeated jiu-jitsu champion Marcus “Buchecha” Almeida in 2023 to cap off this record at 5-1.
Despite punching a bit above his weight and surpassing expectations, Kane still was slapped with a big underdog label when he got his chance at ONE Championship gold in November.
It wasn’t totally unfair. Kane, who was a +500 in most sportsbooks, was fighting an Anatoly Malykhin, who not only had almost three times as much experience, but was undefeated and held belts at both light heavyweight and heavyweight. Malykhin, at a -700, was considered by many ONE Championship’s best fighter at the time.
From the moment the first bell rang for the main event of ONE 169 in Bangkok, Thailand, Kane looked like no underdog. He connected some big shots on Malykhin and then took him to the ground. Kane used his strength, high-level wrestling, and striking power to bully Malykhin like never seen before. The Russian fighter put up a good fight, and had his moments, but it wasn’t enough to beat Kane. In the end, “Reug Reug” was awarded a split decision win, and was able to take the ONE Championship belt back to Senegal.
Few saw Kane becoming a champion of a major promotion at the start of his career. Once he got to the dance years later, he was still written off by most. Against the odds and the critics, Kane scored one of the biggest upsets in ONE Champiosnhip history. That’s what “Reug Reug” was a lock for MMA Junkie’s 2024 Upset of the Year.
