"He is the strongest in this flyweight division after me" – Yuya Wakamatsu has former champ Kairat Akhmetov in his sights

Yuya Wakamatsu will have his hands full when he challenges Adriano Moraes for the ONE flyweight world title at ONE X, but he’s already setting up plans for whatever happens after ONE Championship’s 10-year anniversary show.

'Little Piranha' is looking to take on no.3-ranked flyweight Kairat Akhmetov in the near future.

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In an interview with ONE Championship, the Japanese star said that Akhmetov is the last of the top five flyweights that he’s yet to face. 'Little Piranha' said:

“So If I win this title, I want to defend myself against Kairat Akhmetov because I think he is the strongest in this flyweight division after me.”

When asked if he’s still willing to fight Akhmetov even if he loses to Moraes on March 26 at Singapore Indoor Stadium, the Japanese star added:

“Yeah, I don't think I deserve to get a match with Kairat Akhmetov for a non-title bout because if I lose this title match, that means I'm not strong enough to fight."

Wakamatsu is riding a five-fight winning streak that propelled him to a title shot with Moraes, the only fighter in MMA history to knock out Demetrious Johnson—a man considered to be the greatest MMA fighter of all time.

Moraes, meanwhile, is on his third reign with the title and will be making his second defense of the belt he took from Geje Eustaquio in January 2019.

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Wakamatsu and his desire to face everyone in the top 5

'Little Piranha' (15-4), who’s ranked no.2 in the division, already faced Reece McLaren (no.5), Danny Kingad (no.4), Demetrious Johnson (no.1), and is set to face Moraes at ONE X: Grand Finale.

That one man in the top five of the rankings is former champion Akhmetov (25-2).

'The Kazakh' is on a streak of his own, winning four straight and five of his last six in ONE Championship.

Wakamatsu said that he wants to prove his mettle against all the top flyweights in the promotion and Akhmetov will complete that puzzle.

“That's really simple because I haven’t faced Kairat Akhmetov. I already competed against Danny Kingad, Geje Eustaquio, and Reece McLaren. Also, I have never fought against Kairat. That's why I really wanted to fight against Kairat.”