"He has really tough hands" - Adriano Moraes struggled to showcase improved striking against Danny Kingad

ONE flyweight MMA star Adriano Moraes planned to flaunt his revamped striking abilities against Danny Kingad at ONE 169: Malykhin vs. 'Reug Reug' this past Friday, Nov. 8, but Kingad's surprising aggressiveness convinced him against it.

'Mikinho' stated in an interview with the Bangkok Post following ONE 169:

"As an MMA fighter, I try to train my skills, so nowadays, I'm much better on striking. I also have been training a lot in American Top Team with my coaches, Olivera brothers in boxing, Muay Thai, all the team. I have improved, so I tried to show it today but Danny came hard. He has really tough hands, so I have to enjoy the opportunity, thank God the guillotine was on point."

'The King' fought ferociously inside the Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand, hoping to avenge his defeat to Moraes in November 2017, where the Brazilian submitted him to retain the ONE flyweight MMA world championship.

However, Moraes had perfectly scouted Kingad's strategy and eventually secured a guillotine choke to force the Filipino spitfire to tap out late in the second round at ONE 169.

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Adriano Moraes eyeing vacant ONE flyweight MMA crown

Adriano Moraes wants to fight next for the vacant ONE flyweight MMA world championship after MMA legend Demetrious Johnson relinquished the crown when he retired this past September at ONE 168: Denver inside the Ball Arena.

The top-ranked ONE flyweight MMA competitor told the Bangkok Post:

"I did my homework. I won the fight, so I think I'm in the finals for this vacant belt. I saw some contenders in the division have their fights coming up, so let's watch these fights and see who's gonna be next."

Fans in the United States and Canada with an active Prime Video subscription can rewatch ONE 169 on demand.