Shaolin disciples should win the ＂gatekeeper＂ with the gold belt before transforming into comprehensive fighting.

On June 3rd, Xie Wei, the 158th issue of the ONE Championship, will play against Reese McLaren. Photo courtesy of ONE Championship

After three months’ delay, Xie Wei and Reese McLaren will finally meet in the round cage.

On June 3rd, the 158th ONE Championship will be held in Singapore Indoor Stadium. Xie Wei, the only China star in the battle card, ushered in an important battle in his sports career. His opponent was Reese McLaren, who ranked fifth in the flyweight class and was known as the "gatekeeper". The match was originally scheduled for March, but it was postponed due to McLaren’s injury.

Xie Wei is a representative player who turned from traditional martial arts to mixed fighting. He had previously studied martial arts in Shaolin Martial Arts School for three years and taught for more than one year. After entering the round cage from Wulin, Xie Wei in the round cage punched fiercely and attacked quickly, maintaining a very high winning rate and KO rate. Looking back now, Xie Wei’s heart is full of gratitude. His solid martial arts skills and tenacious will were tempered in those youthful years.

Xie Wei is always in a state of preparation. Photo courtesy of ONE Championship

This is a late game.

In January this year, Xie Wei, who won three games in a row, was informed that he would play a game with Reese McLaren in "ONE: The Eternal Light" in March. But a few days before the game, McLaren was injured and retired, and the game has been dragged on until now.

From receiving the notice of the game to now, Xie Wei has always been in a state of preparation, even if the game was cancelled in the middle. "Without any slack, I know the game will come again one day." Waiting for a long time will inspire Xie Wei’s fighting spirit even more. He can’t wait to play.

"I know something about him." After training, Xie Wei has studied the top five players in his flyweight class many times, which are the hurdles he must overcome to hit the gold belt. Xie Wei said that the ranked players are naturally stronger than others, but he firmly believes in his own strength and that he can find a "magic trick" to defeat the enemy.

Among many players in the flyweight class, McLaren is a special existence. When challenging high-ranking players, McLaren never won. Mclaren remained unbeaten against the players out of the rankings, which led him to be stuck in the fifth position, unable to get up or down, and was also known as the "gatekeeper" of the flyweight class.

McLaren is in a stable state and is known as the "gatekeeper" of the flyweight class. Photo courtesy of ONE Championship

In an interview before the game, McLaren said that if he can beat Xie Wei, he will challenge the active world champion Adriano Moraes. "If they ask me who I want to fight, I will not hesitate to call Moraes." Among the top 5 players in the flyweight class, McLaren is the only player who has not been defeated by Moraes.

For Xie Wei, this game is also an opportunity. If you can win the game, Xie Wei’s career will open a whole new world. At present, Xie Wei has won three consecutive victories in the ONE championship, and is expected to become the second China male player to enter the ranking after Tang Kai. At the same time, Xie Wei will also have the opportunity to challenge demetrious johnson, the idol and now the number one "Big Mouse".

Xie Wei is a contestant who walked out of "ONE’s English Search Tour in China" and won the ONE championship contract as the No.1 scholar.

After winning the contract in 2020, Xie Wei met the second-ranked Danny Kingard in the first game, who was a member of the famous Gloria team in the Philippines and a star player that ONE strongly supported. After a three-game stalemate, Xie Wei was sentenced to a slight defeat, and he still refuses to accept this result. Whenever he talks about Jingard, Xie Wei always emphasizes, "First of all, I want to make it clear that I didn’t lose that game."

Xie Wei watched the replay of the game against Jingard many times, almost a frame-by-frame replay. "My offense, enthusiasm and management are all dominant." However, Xie Wei also admitted that he did not fully understand the rules of the ONE championship, which was his only disadvantage. But competitive competition is to follow the rules, which is the same for everyone.

Losing to Jingard made Xie Wei find a reference, and he knew more about his position at this level. In Xie Wei’s plan, winning McLaren will definitely be called the golden belt. In case there is no chance in a short time, Xie Wei will continue to ask for a second battle with Jingard, which has always been his obsession. "That was the only game I lost after I entered ONE. I hope to win and end him satisfactorily."

After losing to Jingard, Xie Wei became one of the most powerful China fighters in the international arena with (T) three strong enemies: KO Chen Rossena, Kantala Ji Agatha and Jin Dahuan.

Up to now, Xie Wei’s career record has a very high winning rate. But Xie Wei lost his career and the first show of the ONE championship. "These defeats are a spur to me. I will stand up where I fall and try to make progress." Xie Wei always believes that "the situation is created by the heart, and everything is done by man". Only with enough effort can there be the possibility of winning.

Xie Wei is a contestant who walked out of "ONE China’s English Search Tour". Photo courtesy of ONE Championship

Xie Wei has been a naughty boy since he was a child, and he is interested in many things. After graduating from junior high school, Xie Wei wanted to try the world outside the school, so his father used the summer vacation to send him to a factory for exercise. After staying for more than three months, Xie Wei really couldn’t stand the boring life on the assembly line and didn’t want his life to be spent on the assembly line.

Once in an Internet cafe, Xie Wei saw the enrollment brochure of Shaolin Martial Arts School. After practicing martial arts routines since childhood, he immediately had the idea of going to Shaolin to practice martial arts. At that time, Xie Wei was working and living in Guangzhou with his parents. My father was very supportive of Xie Wei and personally sent him from Guangzhou to Dengfeng Shaolin Martial Arts School. He studied art in Shaolin Martial Arts School for three years, and then worked as a coach for more than a year.

"I am very grateful for the time I spent in Shaolin Martial Arts School. It was because of the tempering during that time that my martial arts, psychology and will changed qualitatively." Xie Wei said that he was lucky to meet a group of good masters in Shaolin Temple, and now he is full of gratitude every time he talks about it.

Later, for the sake of "champion dream", Xie Wei resolutely went to Qingdao to practice mixed fighting. In the field of comprehensive fighting, there are not many players who have transformed from traditional martial arts, and Xie Wei is one of them. After coming out to play the game, boxing fans like to call Xie Wei "Shaolin Head Coach". In 2019, when he participated in the "ONE Search for Britain", Xie Wei ended his opponents in all five games. He was nicknamed "Hunter" for his fierce punches and rapid attacks.

On May 28th, Xie Wei left Qingdao for Singapore to prepare for the match with McLaren. When packing, Xie Wei took a sachet with him from his family. No matter how far you go, your family is always concerned. In 2016, Xie Wei played a game in his hometown in Hunan. His father came back from Guangzhou to help out, and relatives also cheered him off. At that time, relatives knew that Xie Wei was a mixed martial arts athlete. Seeing her son fighting on the stage, the mother was distressed to death. After that, Xie Wei won’t tell his family about the time of the game in advance. Every time he calls after the game to say that he is safe. Slowly, his family knows more about the game and trusts Xie Wei more, and the heart he bears is slowly put down.

Joining the ONE Championship for more than two years, Xie Wei said that he has always been a newcomer. "I don’t know where I will play in the future. The only thing I can grasp is to do well in the present." In Xie Wei’s taskbar, the short-term plan is to score the ranking, and the long-term plan is to win the gold belt. "These must be done step by step, and there is no hurry." When he said this, his tone was full of firmness.

Sun Haiguang, Chief Reporter of Beijing News

Editor Han Shuangming

Proofread Wu Xingfa