“This fight will end in submission” - Chatri Sityodtong offers his thoughts on Ham Seo Hee-Itsuki Hirata matchup

ONE CEO and Chairman Chatri Sityodtong was thrilled to announce an atomweight MMA bout between Ham Seo Hee and Itsuki Hirata earlier this week. Sizing up their skills on both fronts, Chatri predicted how their match on November 19 will end.

Joining the major Japanese card at ONE 163 is Itsuki ‘Android 18’ Hirata. The 23-year-old is coming off a major win against Lin Hequin at ONE on Prime Video 1 after suffering her lone loss at ONE X earlier this year.

She will be tested by a very experienced fighter in the No.2-ranked contender Ham Seo Hee, who is riding the wave of the best stretch of her career thus far with eight straight wins.

At the ONE 163 press conference, Sityodtong admitted that the leap to victory will be difficult for Itsuki:

“This is definitely Itsuki's toughest fight in her entire career. Ham Seo Hee has no holes in her game, no weaknesses in her game. She is a complete fighter and fighting in her natural weight. So Itsuki really needs to come prepared for this matchup.”

As Chatri Sityodtong said before, the South Korean slugger Ham Seo Hee is one of the toughest competitors in the stacked atomweight division. She’s 2-0 in ONE Championship, holding two back-to-back victories against Filipino star Denise Zamboanga, who is ranked third on the roster.

Prior to ONE, ‘Hamzzang’ fought under major MMA promotions across the world, including the US, Japan, and South Korea, collecting multiple championship titles in the process.

If her experience wasn’t intimidating enough, she’s also an intelligent and well-rounded fighter. Itsuki Hirata will certainly have her hands full when she steps inside the ring on November 18.

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Chatri Sityodtong also believes in Itsuki Hirata’s potential to end the fight early

Chatri Sityodtong doesn’t negate the potential danger Itsuki Hirata poses to Ham Seo Hee, which could be one of the reasons why he’s thrilled about this matchup.

Before Hirata joined ONE Championship, she appeared on the third season of a Japanese MMA reality show called the Fighting Agent War. ‘Android 18’ turned heads when she finished all four of her competitors by way of submission.

She continued her run for two more years under ONE Championship until she suffered her only loss at ONE X this year.

Believing in her potential to make this an exciting matchup, Chatri Sityodtong knows she’s got more tools in her arsenal to prove she belongs in the top rankings.

In the same press conference, he said:

“You can see that Itsuki is a very dangerous fighter. She has power in her hands. Of course, she has good submission skills. It is going to be who can dictate the fight. I believe this fight will end in submission.”