MMA: Former Singapore swimmer and Olympian May Ooi signs for One Championship

May Ooi, who represented Singapore at the 1992 Summer Olympics, will face Malaysian Ann Osman in the strawweight division (56.7kg) at the Stadium Negara on Aug 18. PHOTO: SHIN MIN DAILY NEWS

SINGAPORE - Singapore mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter May Ooi has signed on with One Championship and will make her debut at the One: Quest For Greatness in Kuala Lumpur. The deal was announced on Monday (July 10).

The 40-year-old former national swimmer, who represented Singapore at the 1992 Summer Olympics, will face Malaysian Ann Osman in the strawweight division (56.7kg) at the Stadium Negara on Aug 18.

While Ann, 31, boasts a record of five wins and three losses - all in One Championship - Ooi has fought against a more diverse group of opponents in the Rebel Fighting Championship and the World Series of Fighting Global Championship.

Their bout will also reignite a female MMA Causeway rivalry for the first time since 2013. The last such fight also featured then-debutante Ann, who lost to Sherilyn Lim by a split decision at the Singapore Indoor Stadium.

Signing with the One Championship has also taken Ooi, who holds a medical degree, one step closer to facing Hawaiian atomweight champion Angela Lee.

Earlier in June, The New Paper reported that the Singapore-based MMA promotion's founder and chairman Chatri Sityodtong was open to a match between the two on a few conditions, one of which would be for Ooi to be signed to One Championship, a deal she penned on June 24.

Next month's One Championship event will be headlined by a featherweight title bout between defending champion Marat Gafurov and Martin Nguyen, while Angela's 19-year-old brother, Christian, takes on Malaysia's Keanu Subba, 22, in the featherweight division.

Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.