“He's not going to stand and bang” - Aung La N Sang says Yushin Okami will try to take their fight to the ground

Former two-division ONE world champion Aung La N Sang knows that fellow MMA legend Yushin Okami will want to exercise his ground game from the onset rather than trade punches with him inside the circle.

The hotly anticipated matchup between the two legends will be another one for the history books as they decide who Asia’s No.1 middleweight is at ONE 163.

Their fight is scheduled to take place at the Singapore Indoor Stadium on Saturday, November 19, and Aung La is more than excited about the opportunity to forge his run back to a world title.

However, getting back on track after losing to Vitaly Bigdash last February and Reinier de Ridder a couple of fights before that won't be an easy task when he goes up against another decorated grappler like Okami. The Burmese-American fighter revealed that although he’ll be ready for Okami, his achilles heel has always been his ground game.

Speaking to SCMP MMA, the 37-year-old icon explained the areas where Okami is most dangerous:

“Well, his grappling, his judo, his body locks. He's long, he's tall, and stylistically, it's not a good matchup for me, stylistically because the long-rangy grapplers are the kind of fighters that I have a harder time with. He's not going to stand and bang with me, that's for sure. But, I mean, we've game-planned for him. I mean, I've worked with a lot of teammates [for] him, so it should be good.”

Testing himself against what he knows to be his weakness is what makes Aung La a truly remarkable legend in the sport.

Catch the full interview below:

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Aung La N Sang believes his team will get him ready for a war with Yushin Okami

Aung La N Sang and Yushin Okami have been respectfully calling each other out for quite a while now. After months of speculation and anticipation, their match was made official at the ONE 163 press conference this past October.

Working with an elite team of coaches and grapplers at Kill Cliff FC, ‘The Burmese Python’ has full confidence in their skillsets to help him prepare for this fight. Focusing on all areas of MMA and not just with his striking, the 37-year-old Florida-based Burmese fighter is certain he’ll take home the victory.

Back in September, Aung La teased his imminent return to the circle on his Instagram with a preview of his training camp. In the caption, he wrote:

"Contract signed! 📝 @onechampionship

I know my team @killcliff_fc will get me ready for war 🎯. @henrihooft 🙏💪"