The former Bellator Middleweight champion, Rafael Lovato Jr, will join ONE championship to face off against two-time ADCC world champion Giancarlo Bodoni at ONE 173.
Lovator Jr is most known for his accomplishments in MMA after he famously upset the Middleweight great Gegard Mousasi and won the Bellator Middleweight title. After which he was forced to vacate the belt and retire from MMA due to a brain condition that made him more susceptible to brain damage.
Since retiring from MMA, Lovato has been able to compete in Submission grappling and continues to rack up wins on the grappling scene. He even made it to the finals of the 2024 ADCC World Championships, in which he won a silver medal, proving that he is still one of the best grapplers in the world despite his age and condition.
Rafael Lovato Jr now has a chance to go mainstream once again.
Lovato Jr. reached the top of MMA and made headlines when a Jiu-Jitsu specialist overcame one of the most underrated fighters in MMA history, Gegard Mousasi, a remarkably well-rounded dominant fighter at the time. Now, he’s once again climbing up the mountain and facing the big dogs when he faces the far younger two-time ADCC world champion, Giancarlo Bodoni. Lovato has yet another mountain to climb, but I do not doubt the former two-sport champion.
