feature-image
feature-image

Japanese MMA legends Yoshihiro Akiyama and Shinya Aoki are all set to settle their differences and prove their valor at ONE Championship’s ONE X event on March 26.

Terrell Owens holding Dude Wipes XL

Shinya Aoki (47-9, 1 NC) has been calling out the former UFC veteran ‘Sexyama’ for a fight since last October. Aoki, who’s one of the biggest stars on the ONE roster, released a dramatic promo to call out Akiyama after a grappling bout.

Watch What’s Trending Now!

ADVERTISEMENT

Finally, his calls have been answered as UFC analyst Ariel Helwani confirmed the 170-pounds bout touted as “Japanese Legends MMA fight”

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

Helwani tweeted, “Shinya Aoki vs. Yoshihiro “Sexyama” Akiyama has been booked for ONE X on March 26, sources say. The lightweight (170) bout will be billed as a “Japanese Legends MMA fight.”

The 38-year-old submission artist, Aoki, has been a two-time ONE lightweight champion. The BJJ black belt has been a part of many noteworthy MMA promotions. These include PRIDE, Strikeforce, RIZIN, and Bellator. In his latest outing in April, Aoki finished his opponent, Eduard Folayang, in the first round via an armbar in April at ONE on TNT 4.

ADVERTISEMENT

READ MORE- “It’s Probably Going to End as Soon as It Switches Over”-Christian Lee Backs Demetrious Johnson to Secure a Finish Against Rodtang at One X

On the flip side, ‘Sexyama (15-7, 2 NC) ‘ will return to action after almost two years. The 46-year-old former UFC fighter last competed in February 2020 against Sherif Mohamed and beat him via first-round knockout.

ADVERTISEMENT

Besides the Japanese clash, there will be many other exciting fights at the Singapore Indoor Stadium in Kallang, Singapore.

Who else is fighting at ONE X?

Angela Lee and Stamp Fairtex will headline the ONE X event by ONE Championship in an atomweight title clash.

ADVERTISEMENT

Also featured in the event is a ‘special rules’ fight between former UFC flyweight champion Demetrious ‘The Mighty Mouse’ Johnson and Muay Thai champion Rodtang ‘The Iron Man’ Jitmuangnon.

ADVERTISEMENT

The super fight will take place as a flyweight freestyle match, which puts both the MMA elites as the main attraction of the event.

ADVERTISEMENT

What are your thoughts on the super fight? How excited are you for the card? Let us know in the comments below.

Share this with a friend:

Link Copied!

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

Written by

author-image

Aashish Kumar

455 Articles

Aashish Kumar is a UFC writer at EssentiallySports. A graduate in Journalism & Mass Communication, this Brandon Moreno fan has interned at reputed media houses and gained valuable reporting experience. Building on that experience, Aashish will look to tap into his love for combat sports and let fans benefit from his passion and journalistic expertise. He is a sports aficionado who has played at the university level. Besides sports, he is an avid gamer with titles like CS: GO, Call of Duty, and Battlegrounds in his arsenal. When not engaged with sports, he can be found reading novels or watching his favorite anime.

Know more

ADVERTISEMENT