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Johan Ghazali isn't looking past his upcoming opponent, Josue Cruz.
Earlier this year, 17-year-old Ghazali suffered a setback in his journey to become the ONE flyweight Muay Thai world champion.
'Jojo' was matched up against the battle-tested Nguyen Tran Duy Nhat at ONE 167 and the latter refused to back down during the three-round fight, leading to a unanimous decision win.
On September 6, Ghazali returns to action and plans to make a statement during the promotion's return to North America. The 17-year-old will take on Josue Cruz, who endured first-round knockout losses in his two promotional appearances.
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Many fans and analysts see Ghazali as a massive favorite heading into ONE 168. Meanwhile, the flyweight Muay Thai prospect showed respect to Cruz by saying this during a recent interview with Sportskeeda:
"I’m not really thinking of anyone at the moment, you know. It’s just Cruz in my mind, and what I need to do to beat him. Yeah, maybe I’ll have an idea after this fight.”
Johan Ghazali vs Josue Cruz is one of many entertaining matchups taking place inside the Ball Arena in Denver, Colorado.
Tickets for the September 6 event featuring two world title fights can be found on Ticketmaster.
Josue Cruz needs win against Johan Ghazali at ONE 168
Josue Cruz made his ONE Championship debut in May 2022, suffering a 35-second knockout loss against Walter Goncalves. The Mexican-born flyweight returned in May of this year and endured a similar result, with Sean Climaco knocking him out in two minutes and six seconds.
'Tuzo' could be running out of time to showcase his potential in ONE Championship. Therefore, the 28-year-old needs to showcase an impressive performance against the always-dangerous Johan Ghazali.
Meanwhile, Johan Ghazali gained invaluable experience against Nguyen Tran Duy Nhat. The 17-year-old phenom plans to utilize what he's learned at ONE 168 and put the division back on notice with a brutal knockout win against Cruz.
Fans shouldn't blink when Ghazali and Cruz step into the ring, as the judges likely won't be needed for this flyweight Muay Thai matchup.
