MMA veteran John Lineker suffered a brutal loss in his latest fight outside the UFC.
Lineker, from Brazil, spent many years as one of the most dangerous fighters in the UFC’s flyweight and bantamweight divisions. During that time, he defeated the likes of Ian McCall, Rob Font, John Dodson and Marlon “Chito” Vera, and developed a reputation for both his fearsome knockout power and absurd durability.
In 2019, following a split-decision loss to Cory Sandhagen, Lineker left the UFC and signed with ONE Championship. He won his first three fights in the organization, defeating Muin Gafurov, Kevin Belingon and Troy Worthen. That set him up for a fight with Bibiano Fernandos, who he knocked out to win the bantamweight belt.
Lineker lost the ONE bantamweight MMA title to Fabricio Andrade in 2023. He then went 2-1 in his next two MMA bouts, first beating Jae Woong Kim and Stephan Loman, before losing a short-notice fight with the much larger Shinya Aoki.
Since losing to Aoki, Lineker has been focused on Muay Thai and kickboxing. Unfortunately, his latest kickboxing bout ended in disaster, as he was chopped down by the much larger Ben Woolliss. The fight was contested at 155 pounds, 20 pounds above the limit for Linekers bantamweight fights in the UFC. And remember, he used to fight at 125 pounds.
It was over inside a round.
See the finishing sequence below.
Ben Woolliss stops UFC vet John Lineker in ONE Championship ring
TIMBER 🪓 Ben Woolliss chops down John Lineker in the very first round!#ONEFightNight41 | 🔴 LIVE NOW
📺 How To Watch in Your Country 👉 https://t.co/8E7xwumtkq
🇺🇸🇨🇦 Watch Live on Prime
🇬🇧🇮🇪 Watch Live on Sky Sports
🌍 Live TV broadcast in 195+ countries (check local listings) pic.twitter.com/H551Ty6oCs
— ONE Championship (@ONEChampionship) March 14, 2026
While Lineker had some early success in Muay Thai and kickboxing in ONE, he has now lost three-straight. The loss to Woolliss was preceded by losses to Hiroki Akimoto and Ratchasiesan Laochokcharoen. It us unknown if the former UFC talent will return to MMA. However, at 35 years old, it’s possible his long career is drawing to a close.