Ham Seo Hee was ‘proud’ of Itsuki Hirata for finally making weight

Despite some animosity between the two, Ham Seo Hee was proud of Itsuki Hirata for successfully making weight for their clash on Friday night.

‘Hamzzang’ walked out of the Singapore Indoor Stadium with her third-straight win inside the circle and was more than happy to put her rivalry to bed with the fast-rising Japanese star.

During her appearance at the ONE Fight Night 8 post-fight press event, Ham Seo Hee revealed that she was both happy with Hirata’s discipline and determination to make weight. She was also proud of herself for scoring a hard-fought unanimous decision victory:

“I feel really good,” Ham stated. “Originally, there was a bit of negative sentiment, but after Itsuki Hirata made weight, I was very happy. Actually, I was very happy for her and I was very proud of her. It was a good match. I'm happy that it's over, and I'm happy that I won.”

Originally, Ham Seo Hee and Itsuki Hirata were scheduled to scrap at ONE 163 in November, but Hirata failed to pass hydration for the bout. As a result, Ham called off the contest, calling Hirata unprofessional in the process.

Instead of engaging in a war of words, Hirata opted to focus on improving her skills and making weight for their meeting last week. Itsuki Hirata may not have had her hand raised, but she beat the scale and earned the respect of one of the best female fighters. That in and of itself is a victory.

Catch Ham's post-fight interview below:

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Itsuki Hirata eyeing potential move to strawweight after previous struggles on the scale

Itsuki Hirata passed weight and hydration for her ONE Fight Night 8 showdown with Ham Seo Hee last week, but her prior struggles to make weight has made her consider a move from atomweight to strawweight.

Before stepping into the circle with Ham Seo Hee on Friday night, ‘Android 18’ suggested a potential move to the weight class currently ruled by Xiong Jing Nan:

“I thought about moving up to strawweight like maybe once, but for this fight, I wanted to [fight] in atomweight. Maybe after this fight, I might think about it,” Hirata admitted in an interview with the South China Morning Post.

With the women’s atomweight being arguably the most stacked division in ONE Championship, a move to strawweight could potentially serve Hirata well.

Not only would it reduce her weight cut, but given her overall success at atomweight, a big win in the higher weight class could put her in line for a shot against long-reigning strawweight queen Xiong Jing Nan.