ONE Championship 159: Hiroba Minowa admits he is ‘jealous’ of opponent

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By Jake Skudder

Published Jul 6, 2022

Here is what Hiroba Minowa had to say regarding his upcoming bout at ONE 159 against Bokang Masunyane from the Singapore Indoor Stadium.

ONE Championship 159 will be taking place on Friday, July 22nd from the Singapore Indoor Stadium and Hiroba Minowa will be facing Bokang Masunyane in a featured bout on the main card of the night.

There are a number of major fights set to take place on the card for the MMA promotion, and this strawweight contest looks extremely intriguing.

Minowa would reveal some pretty interesting things about how he is preparing for the contest, as well as actually listing out where he falters compared to the South African.

Here is what Hiroba Minowa had to say regarding his upcoming bout at ONE 159 against Bokang Masunyane from the Singapore Indoor Stadium.

Hiroba Minowa on Bokang Masunyane

Image Courtesy: ONE FC

Speaking to the official ONE FC site, Minowa revealed that he is ‘jealous’ of his South African opponent and his physical ability and agility.

He said: “I only want to become a World Champion. I know as long as I fight at ONE, I have to face strong opponents.

“[Masunyane] is an amazing athlete. He has the best physical ability. He has the best agility. Even if we Japanese train hard, we cannot achieve his level of agility. I’m so jealous. But I feel like we have something in common with a humble and tough mentality.”

Despite this ‘jealousy,’ Minowa would state that he still has the skills to take out his opponent on the night.

“Bokang has good agility, but he relies on it too much. He should utilise that agility on top of MMA skills. I don’t have as much power or agility as Bokang, but I know how to win.

“In general, I don’t have a specific background in other martial arts but my MMA skills are better than others. I have better defensive skills. Also, I am a better grappler than him.

“This fight will be a very competitive one – either standing or on the ground it will be a very close game. I think the one who slows down first will lose this match. I’m ready to fight for the full three rounds.”