ONE Championship: “Now is my time” - ONE newcomer Yuki Yoza ready to take the stacked bantamweight Muay Thai ranks by storm

27-year-old former K-1 lightweight champion Yuki Yoza of Japan is looking to leave his mark in the world's largest martial arts organization ahead of his highly anticipated ONE Championship debut.

Recognized as one of the top pound-for-pound kickboxers in the world, Yoza signed with ONE just a few weeks ago and is already getting ready to show fans what he can do in the ONE Championship ring.

Speaking to the South China Morning Post in a recent interview, Yoza made a bold statement.

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The Japanese veteran said:

"Now is my time. I will show everyone."

Yoza is set to make his ONE Championship debut at ONE Friday Fights 109, where he takes on Russian sensation Elbrus 'The Samurai' Osmanov in a bantamweight kickboxing showdown.

The two lock horns live on Asia primetime from the historic Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand, on Friday, May 23.

Fans in the United States and Canada can log on to watch.onefc.com to catch all the action live and absolutely free, or visit ONE Championship's official YouTube channel for a free livestream.

Yuki Yoza open to facing six-foot-four-inch monster Nabil Anane in a future showdown

While most fighters tend to avoid Nabil Anane like the plague, Yuki Yoza wants to welcome the challenge of facing off agains the six-foot-four-inch tall ONE interim bantamweight Muay Thai world champion.

Yoza feels like it would be a good matchup for him, and one that fans would absolutely eat up.

"We all know how strong Nabil is. We all know that he has a great character. And I simply want to beat Nabil out of interest. Nothing more."

Stay tuned to Sportskeeda MMA for all the latest news and updates surrounding Yuki Yoza's next fight.

About the author

Dan is an MMA writer with 10+ years of overall experience. Before his ongoing tenure at Sportskeeda, Dan got the opportunity to be at the forefront of the sport by contributing to ONE Championship and Fight Game Asia. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Psychology.

Dan’s connection to MMA started during the early days of the UFC and ONE Championship. He previously practiced boxing and ranks Demetrious Johnson, Anderson Silva, Georges St-Pierre, Jon Jones, and Fedor Emelianenko as the top five MMA fighters of all time.

He has covered several events onsite and on the ground for ONE Championship and hopes to continue doing so. He ensures that he churns out accurate articles by citing only legitimate sources and getting firsthand accounts through exclusive interviews whenever required.

Dan feels MMA fighter pay seems like an issue because it often gets compared to what fighters earn in boxing but that MMA will eventually catch up in the future.

His other interests include soccer and video games.

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Edited by C. Naik