“Everyday I wake up thinking of Okami” - Aung La N Sang obsessed with beating Japanese star

Just two weeks out from his return to the circle on November 19, ONE Championship legend Aung La N Sang only has one thing on his mind: fellow MMA legend Yushin ‘Thunder’ Okami.

The two Asian warriors are scheduled to square off when the promotion returns to the Singapore Indoor Stadium for ONE 163.

Since signing on the dotted line, ‘The Burmese Python’ has had tunnel vision. In an interview with the South China Morning Post, Aung La discussed his intense focus heading into the highly-anticipated showdown:

“My focus is on Okami, and that's the only thing that I'm focused on right now. Everyday I wake up thinking of Okami, so nothing else past that point matters right now. I'm sorry, my interview is going to be boring because everything is towards Okami right now.”

After earning seven straight victories inside the circle that saw him become a two-division world champion, Aung La N Sang has experienced a bad run of luck as of late. The Burmese martial arts icon went 1-3 in his last four and lost both the ONE middleweight and light heavyweight world titles to undefeated Dutchman Reinier de Ridder.

Yushin Okami has similarly struggled since joining ONE Championship, losing his first two bouts before securing his breakthrough win in 2019 against Agilan Thani. After restrictions brought about by the pandemic kept him away from the action, ‘Thunder’ will look to continue his winning ways at ONE 163.

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Aung La N Sang determined to climb back to the top

Once a two-division world champion, Aung La N Sang is on a long road back to the top. With an 83% finish rate inside the circle, ‘The Burmese Python’ is one of the promotion’s most prolific finishers. However, the Myanmar native understands that in order to compete with the talent of today, he must evolve his skills to have a chance at reclaiming the glory of the past;

"I have really high-level grapplers at my disposal that I can work with. So it's not a matter of, ‘Can I do it?,’ it's a matter of when. It's going to take time, I'm probably going to have to beat a few more guys. So it is what it is. I'm willing to climb back to the top."

A win over a legend like Yushin Okami could give Aung La N Sang the confidence he needs moving forward, but it will certainly be a tough task as ‘Thunder’ will enter the bout with a similar desire to climb to the top of the mountain.

Watch N Sang's highlights in ONE Championship below: