One middleweight and light-heavyweight world champion Reinier de Ridder has significant pressure on his shoulders as he prepares for the main event of One 159: De Ridder v Bigdash on July 22 at the Singapore Indoor Stadium.
In the headliner, the Dutchman will put his middleweight strap on the line for the second time this year when he faces former divisional king Vitaly Bigdash of Russia, and he'll be looking to keep his unbeaten run alive.
De Ridder holds a perfect 15-0 record, and he finished off Kiamrian "Brazen" Abbasov via a third-round submission in February to retain the middleweight belt for the first time.
However, Bigdash will be hungry to reclaim the gold he once held and "The Dutch Knight" is wary of his threats. So, the 31-year-old phenom is cutting no corners in his preparation.
He recently travelled to the US to train under some of the sport's most knowledgeable coaches, including his fellow countryman and head of Sanford MMA, Henri Hooft.
"Henri's coaching was very welcomed as well, and it's a room full of killers there. It's not like a couple of pros like we have here in Holland. But there were 60 or 70 pros on the mat every morning and evening. So it was very, very helpful for me."
One skill in particular that De Ridder is looking to sharpen is his ground game.
The two-division king is already a black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu, and he has a plethora of submission wins to his name.
But as a champion, he's leaving no stone unturned as he readies himself for his upcoming opponent, who is enjoying a three-bout winning streak, including two submission victories.
To do so, he made sure to check in and train with John Danaher while in America.
Operating out of Texas, Danaher is renowned as one of the greatest grappling coaches of the last 20 years, and De Ridder recognised just how special it was to get guidance from a living legend.