'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,/9j/2wBDAAYEBQYFBAYGBQYHBwYIChAKCgkJChQODwwQFxQYGBcUFhYaHSUfGhsjHBYWICwgIyYnKSopGR8tMC0oMCUoKSj/2wBDAQcHBwoIChMKChMoGhYaKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCj/wgARCAAHAAoDASIAAhEBAxEB/8QAFgABAQEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAUH/8QAFAEBAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAv/aAAwDAQACEAMQAAAAy+KJ/wD/xAAfEAACAgICAwEAAAAAAAAAAAABAgMEBREAMRNRcqH/2gAIAQEAAT8ApR42KGk93H1bb6WIQEuQ7sgZA3obI/Bvs8u3IBdsBMawTyNoGU9b+uf/xAAWEQEBAQAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAASACH/2gAIAQIBAT8AR2//xAAXEQADAQAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAQJB/9oACAEDAQE/AKWH/9k='%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
Fresh off his successful world title defense against the great Demetrious Johnson in April 2021 at ONE on TNT I, former ONE flyweight MMA world champion Adriano Moraes was scheduled to defend his championship anew against the challenge of Yuya Wakamatsu.
Moraes and Wakamatsu crossed paths in March 2022 at ONE: X, which occurred inside the Singapore Indoor Stadium. The full fight replay of this bout for flyweight MMA supremacy was published by ONE Championship on YouTube.
Trending
It was a very cautious opening round for both fighters as they gauged each other's range and power, resulting in a calculated approach. They even received a warning from the referee for a lack of action.
Get the latest updates on One Championship Rankings at Sportskeeda and more
The best moment of the round was when the defending champion secured a takedown against the challenger. But Wakamatsu was able to reverse the position and took Moraes' back through a scramble to end the opening round.
Wakamatsu and Moraes increased the intensity and started letting go of their strikes. The former had more success in the second frame, touching the latter with several of his signature power punches.
However, in the third round, 'Mikinho' imposed his grappling superiority and capitalized on 'Little Piranha's exposed head to work his way into a guillotine choke and forced a tap out of Wakamatsu.
Adriano Moraes says that being a world champion can change the lives of the people around them
Ahead of his return on Nov. 8 at ONE 169, where he will face Danny Kingad in a crucial flyweight MMA match with massive world title implications, the American Top Team and Constrictor Team representative appeared on Party Starter Radio for an interview.
In one of the junctures of the talk, Moraes discussed how being a world champion changes an athlete's life, as he explained:
"Sometimes, as a young fighter, you always want to win, I want to knock this guy out. And that's the correct mindset, 'I want to keep my belt, I want to change lives around me with my fists.' Because when you are a World Champion, and the lives of the people you changed too, then you are a good World Champion."
