Yoshihiro Akiyama has always been a man of few words, but his performance at “ONE Championship 109: King of the Jungle” certainly made a big statement.
Akiyama (15-7) starched Egyptian Sherif Mohamed with a perfectly-timed right-hand counter in the first round of their welterweight bout at an empty Singapore Indoor Stadium – the event being forced behind closed doors due to the ongoing coronavirus epidemic in the region – and made clear his desire to compete in South Korea later this year.
“It was a big pity I couldn’t meet the Singaporean people, but it was great that some people could watch it on TV,” he said backstage after his win. “I want, as soon as possible in Korea, ONE Championship.”
The promotion’s initial schedule for 2020 had an event penciled in for Seoul on June 19, but the up-to-date calendar now has ONE taking an event to Shanghai, China the following day instead.
Akiyama will hope his influence will persuade the ONE Championship bosses to squeeze in a South Korea date before the end of 2020, by which time he will be 45.
But, despite his age, the Japanese-Korean MMA veteran is still looking to improve.
“I am really happy, but I think I could move more during the bout,” he said. “He had a lot of power, and also a strong heart. He touched me in different parts of my face. I’ve learned that I need to work more on my footwork.”
