“I hope he knows that he's facing a deadly striker" - Danny Kingad issues warning to Kairat Akhmetov

The much-awaited Danny Kingad and Kairat Akhmetov matchup features two of ONE Championship's best flyweights in a bout that could determine the next challenger for Adriano Moraes’ world title.

Moraes cemented his hold on the world title after a masterful win over Demetrious Johnson, leaving the door open to any worthy challenger who emerges.

No.2-ranked Danny Kingad could be the next man up. While No.3-ranked Yuka Wakamatsu has also been on a hot streak, the No.4-ranked Akhmetov has technically not lost since earning a semifinal slot in the 2019 ONE Flyweight World Grand Prix. A win in any combination of matches between the three will definitely have world title implications.

In a recent interview with ONE Championship, Danny Kingad shared that he’s intrigued by the improvements of ‘The Kazakh’ but warned that he should be careful what he wishes for:

“I noticed that his striking has been improving. I watched his last fight, and I got really excited because his improvement really impressed me,” the Team Lakay star said. “He’s also said that he wants to strike with me, so I’m really motivated by that. I hope he knows that he’s facing a deadly striker."

“Maybe I’ll give him problems when we box. If he truly decides to strike with me, then he’s basically playing my game. That’s the match that I want, so I hope he knows what he wants.”

Akhmetov has vastly improved his stand-up game to pair with the wrestling skills he has developed throughout his lifetime. While there should be no doubt on the level of Danny Kingad’s Team Lakay-honed striking skills, ‘The King’ is supremely confident that he can hold his own on the ground:

“And make no mistake about it, I’m ready to go toe-to-toe with him. I’m ready wherever the match goes. It can be in striking or we can take it to the ground. I know I have a lot of weapons in store for him,” Kingad continues.

“I’m not a fan of people saying, ‘I’ll beat this guy,’ or whatnot because, in each match, your opponent is also preparing hard for you. Let’s just say I’m not afraid of him.”

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Danny Kingad vs. Kairat Akhmetov is a long time coming

The pre-taped ONE: Winter Warriors II, which airs on December 17, will be the third attempt since 2019 to square off Danny Kingad and the former ONE flyweight world champion. No one is more excited for this match happening than Danny Kingad himself:

“It’s been years. I’ve been wanting to face him for a long time,” Kingad says. "Unfortunately, our match got canceled twice. Now, it’s a different kind of excitement for me. I’m facing someone I’ve always wanted to face.”

‘The Kazakh’ had to pull out of their semifinal clash in the 2019 ONE Flyweight World Grand Prix due to injury. ‘The King’ was later pulled from a scheduled 2020 encounter after contracting COVID-19.

Now that the stars have aligned to make the match happen, we will finally see whose fists can back up their chatter.