ARES 43 in Paris: O'Connor and Diatta unify the featherweight title, Alexis Nicolas returns
ARES 43 lands on Friday September 25 at the Adidas Arena in Paris with 9 fights. Undisputed featherweight champion Josh O’Connor, 10-0, meets interim champion Fabacary Diatta, 10-1, to unify the belt. Former kickboxing world champion Alexis Nicolas plays the co-main event in only his 2nd MMA fight.
Key takeaways
- ARES 43 takes place on Friday September 25 at the Adidas Arena in Paris, with 9 fights from 7:30 p.m. Paris time and the main card from 9:30 p.m.
- Undisputed featherweight champion Josh O'Connor (10-0) faces interim champion Fabacary Diatta (10-1) over 5 rounds to unify the ARES title.
- Alexis Nicolas (1-0), a former ISKA and ONE kickboxing world champion, faces Ilyasse Drabo (1-1) at welterweight in the co-main event.
ARES 43 main event: 2 champions, 1 belt
The undisputed champion against the interim
Josh O’Connor holds the ARES featherweight title and has never lost in 10 professional fights. Fabacary Diatta holds the interim belt and arrives at 10-1. Friday settles which of the 2 is the real champion, over 5 rounds.
A Welshman in Paris
O’Connor comes from Wales, Diatta fights at home. The Adidas Arena crowd will be on one side, and O’Connor’s record says he has not needed it so far.
A fight with the UFC in view
The event presentation describes both men as among the best European prospects in the division, with the UFC in sight for the winner. The path is real: on Tuesday, ARES interim welterweight champion Alvi Dasuyev earned a UFC contract on the Contender Series, and a unified title is the cleanest argument a featherweight can take to the next negotiation.
Alexis Nicolas and his 2nd MMA fight
A striker still learning the ground
Nicolas, 27, arrived in MMA with a heavy kickboxing résumé: former ISKA K-1 world champion at super middleweight and former ONE kickboxing world champion. His debut at ARES 40 was a real test. He was tested on the ground early in round 1, then took over and won by TKO in round 2 against Jack Woodard.
Drabo, a striker who can end it
Ilyasse Drabo comes in at 1-1, and his profile is the opposite of a safe 2nd fight: a powerful striker who can finish at any moment. That makes this co-main a stand-up test for a fighter whose stand-up is his strength, which is exactly where surprises happen.
Why it is the co-main event
2 fights into a career is early for a co-main slot. ARES is betting on Nicolas’s name and on what he already showed in the cage, and a 2nd finish would confirm the bet.
Alexis Nicolas est en pleine préparation pour son retour le vendredi 25 septembre à Paris. Il arrivera plus déterminé que jamais sur #ARES43 pour poursuivre son ascension chez ARES FIGHTING !
The rest of the card and how to watch
The main card
Wael Kambouche (2-0) meets Ulysse Obame Ndong at featherweight, Akhmed Amaev (4-0) faces Luke Shanks at flyweight, and Vincent Yerly takes on Joelson Ferreira at middleweight. 4 more bouts complete the prelims, from heavyweight to lightweight.
Times and channels
The prelims start at 7:30 p.m. Paris time on Canal+ Sport via Twitch, the main card prelims at 8:30 p.m. and the main card at 9:30 p.m. on Canal+ Sport 360. The main event is expected around 11:30 p.m.
Follow ARES with real numbers
Results, records and our ratings across European promotions are updated in the FightHub app after every event. Download it to follow O’Connor, Diatta and Nicolas after Friday night.
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