Two title fights will headline One Championship's Heart of the Lion event, the mixed martial arts promotion announced yesterday.

The Nov 9 main event will feature Angela Lee's bid to become the first female two-division champion in One Championship, as she takes on China's Xiong Jingnan for the strawweight (up to 57kg) title. The bout was confirmed in a media conference in Japan last month.

The Hawaii-based Lee, who was born in Vancouver to a Chinese Singaporean father and a South Korean mother, has been One's atomweight (up to 52kg) champion since May 2016.

Billing Heart of the Lion as "the biggest martial arts spectacle in Asia this year", One chairman and chief executive officer Chatri Sityodtong dubbed the Lee-Xiong fight as a "super-bout".

"It's a thrilling match-up that should have fans on the edge of their seats in excitement," he said. "With the two stars being feared finishers, I don't expect this bout to go the distance."

The other headline bout at the Singapore Indoor Stadium will see world champion Bibiano Fernandes of Brazil defend his belt against Filipino Kevin Belingon, in a rematch of the January 2016 title bout, which saw Fernandes submit Belingon in the first round.

But the Filipino has rebounded with five straight wins to earn his shot at the title.

Sazali Abdul Aziz

• For ticket information: www.onefc.com