“It’s that close” - Danny Kingad sees Adriano Moraes - Demetrious Johnson rematch going both ways

ONE flyweight fighter Danny Kingad said Moraes vs Johnson II is a toss-up.

‘The King’ has met both Moraes and Johnson over the course of his MMA career and can safely say that both fighters have what it takes to make it go their way. He recently broke down his thoughts about their most anticipated showdown at ONE on Prime Video 1 with ONE Championship and said:

"You know, Adriano Moraes is a grappler. That’s just who he is. But that doesn’t mean he is not good at striking. In fact, he’s probably one of the hardest fighters in the world to finish because of his grappling ability. At the same time, he’s near-impossible to submit."

"This fight will come down to who makes the first mistake. It’s that close. It could end in a razor-thin decision. If it goes the distance, I’m giving the edge to DJ given that he’s just more well-rounded in terms of overall skills. But if Adriano can take DJ down, he submits him."

Back in 2017, Kingad was a former challenger to the undisputed flyweight title holder Adriano Moraes. The Filipino striker lost to ‘Mikinho’ by rear naked choke in the first round, marking the first loss of his career.

Watch Moraes vs. Kingad below:

The biggest takeaway from this fight is Moraes’ agility at submitting opponents at close range. If ‘Mighty Mouse’ doesn’t pay attention, he will be vulnerable to his attack.

On the flip side, Kingad also engaged with Demetrious Johnson in 2019 in the ONE Flyweight World Grand Prix final. Kingad scrambled with the MMA icon for the entire three rounds, making it difficult for Johnson to find a submission.

Perhaps the key difference in terms of ground work is that Moraes’ jiu-jitsu may be sharper. But at the end of the day, most fans would agree with Danny Kingad’s assessment - one slip up in any department could cost them the entire fight.

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Danny Kingad answers to Reece McLaren’s callout from ONE 158

Danny Kingad is game for a rematch with Reece ‘Lightning’ McLaren three years after their split-decision fight at ONE: Dawn of Heroes. The Aussie warrior is coming off a win against mutual rival Xie Wei at ONE 158 and wants to rectify his loss with the Filipino standout.

Accepting the fight would be a good strategy for Danny Kingad, who is looking to bounce back from a decision loss against Kairat Akhmetov last year. The Wushu warrior accepted his callout and told Sports Inquirer:

“I think he doesn’t believe that he lost in our first fight, that’s why he wants that rematch. Knowing Team Lakay and knowing myself, we’re not backing down from anyone. I’m ready if ever we fight each other again. Give me the date and place.”