“Hands of Stone” will challenge Bibiano Fernandes for the One Championship bantamweight crown on Dec. 5 at Singapore Indoor Stadium in Kallang, Singapore. Lineker parted ways with the Ultimate Fighting Championship in 2019 and finds himself on a three-fight winning streak ahead of his forthcoming showdown with the AMC Pankration-trained Fernandes. The former Jungle Fight champion last competed at One on TNT 3, where he punched out Troy Worthen in the first round of their April 21 pairing.
As Lineker prepares to close out his 2021 campaign against “The Flash,” a look at some of the numbers that have accompanied him to this point:
31: Years of age for Lineker, who was born on June 12, 1990 in Paranagua, Brazil.
4: Lineker victories by submission, accounting for 12% of his career total. His methods of choice: three rear-naked chokes and one guillotine choke. Lineker owns 16 other victories by knockout or technical knockout, another by disqualification and 13 more by decision.
16: Promotions in which Lineker has plied his trade. He has gone 12-4 in the UFC, 4-0 in Jungle Fight, 3-0 in One Championship, 3-0 in Nitrix Champion Fight, 2-1 in Paranagua Fight, 2-0 in Shoot Brazil, 2-0 in Gladiators Fighting Championship, 2-0 in Full Heroes Battle, 1-0 in K.O. Fight, 1-0 in Brazilian Fight League, 1-0 in VIP Stage, 1-0 in Floripa Fight, 0-1 in Warrior’s Challenge, 0-1 in Samurai Fight Combat, 0-1 in Blackout Fight Championship and 0-1 in Golden Fighters.
3: UFC appearances in which Lineker connected with at least 100 significant strikes. He landed 133 of them in a third-round technical knockout of Alptekin Ozkilic at UFC Fight Night 45 on July 16, 2014, 102 of them in a third-round knockout of Brian Kelleher at UFC 224 on May 12, 2018 and 106 of them in a split decision loss to Cory Sandhagen at UFC Fight Night 150 on April 27, 2019.
9: First-round finishes on the Lineker resume. Worthen was his first such victim under One Championship auspices.
78: Seconds needed for Lineker to put away Luiz Carlos Alves Neves with punches at Jungle Fight 28 on May 21, 2011. Having occurred more than a decade ago, it remains the fastest finish of his career.
13: Consecutive calendar years—including 2021—in which Lineker has recorded at least one win. He recorded two victories in 2008, four in 2009, six in 2010, seven in 2011, one in 2012, three in 2013, one in 2014, two in 2015, three in 2016, one in 2017, one in 2018, one in 2019 and one in 2020.
76: Rounds completed by Lineker since he turned pro in 2008. He has gone the distance 19 times in his 43 appearances.
6: Countries in which Lineker has competed as a professional mixed martial artist. He has gone 24-5 in his native Brazil, 5-4 in the United States, 2-0 in Singapore, 1-0 in China, 1-0 in Indonesia and 1-0 in England.
.680: Cumulative winning percentage between the nine men—Sandhagen, T.J. Dillashaw, Ali Bagautinov, Louis Gaudinot, Rafael Silva, Andre Luis de Souza, Erick da Silva, Felipe Arantes and Nelson Velasques—who have defeated Lineker. They sport a combined record of 149-69-1.