“He’s a blessing” - ONE debutant Gilbert Nakatani says his uncle, legendary jockey Corey Nakatani, molded his competitive passion

ONE Championship newcomer Gilbert Nakatani takes pride in his competitve fire, which was inspired by his uncle, the legendary American jockey Corey Nakatani, who he has a great relationship with.

The Califonia native spoke about it in an interview with the promotion ahead of his ONE debut on Dec. 6 at ONE Fight Night 26: Lee vs. Rasulov in Thailand, highlighting how his Hall-of-Fame jockey-uncle provided a guide to how be a professional, competitive and dedicated through his ways.

Nakatani said:

"I still have my uncle, Corey. He's a blessing. He's a Hall-of-Fame jockey. He was one of the best in the world, and he rode horses for like 30 years. He was a big inspiration to me. He still goes to my fights to this now, and we get to spend a little more time together, as he was so busy because he was a professional athlete, cutting weight, riding horses every day, traveling here, and doing this, doing that. I looked up to him a lot."

It is the same competitive fire that James Nakatani will be packing when he makes his ONE debut at ONE Fight Night 26 in a flyweight Muay Thai clash against seasoned campaigner Yuya Wakamatsu, who is looking to notch his third straight win.

ONE Fight Night 26 will take place at the Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok, and air live and for free in U.S. primetime to North American fans with an active Amazon Prime Video subscription.

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Gilbert Nakatani excited to live his dream of competing in ONE Championship

Gilbert Nakatani long sought to showcase his MMA skills to a global audience and is happy and excited to have been given the opportunity to do so in ONE Championship. He looks to get it off to a winning start in his debut at ONE Fight Night 26 on Dec. 6 in Thailand.

The 31-year-old Aragon Training Academy affiliate makes his maiden outing against Japanese fighter Yuya Wakamatsu in a flyweight MMA showdown at the event which will be the last Prime Video show of ONE Championship for this year.

Nakatani shared his thoughts on finally competing in ONE in an interview with the promotion, saying:

"Dreams come true. I believed it, but I was like, 'Is this really happening? This is almost I've ever wanted. Almost a dream come true."

Gilbert Nakatani has an 8-1 record since turning professional in July 2019. He has won four straight matches, the most recent coming in August last year.