“I drive myself and be limitless too” - Itsuki Hirata gets boost after training in New York

Itsuki Hirata got back into the win column in a big way at ONE on Prime Video 1 in August. The fighter, whose nickname is ‘Android 18’, scored a unanimous decision victory over Lin Heqin. Hirata showed off her significantly improved striking skills on the feet, something she credits to her time training at the Longo-Weidman MMA in New York.

Attributing her improvements to time spent in the United States, Hirata discussed the training she receives in America compared to the limitations of training in her home country of Japan:

“I train with a lot of tough fighters in the USA and just do my best. When I train in Japan, I limit myself. But I saw the many limitless fighters here, I drive myself and be limitless too. Looking back on my last fight, I think I was able to beat her by training hard in the United States.”

The skills she developed alongside her coaches Ray Longo and Matt Serra have given Itsuki Hirata the skills to compete in ONE’s stacked atomweight division like never before. She’ll put them to the test once again at ONE 163 on November 19 when she faces her toughest test against No.2-ranked atomweight Ham Seo Hee in what could very well be an atomweight title eliminator.

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Itsuki Hirata is ready to show the world she can compete with the atomweight queen

With her improved striking game and world-class grappling, Itsuki Hirata feels she is ready to compete with the absolute best in the world, including the reigning atomweight women’s world champion, Angela Lee. However, ‘Android 18’ was a little shocked to find out that her fight with Ham Seo Hee could lead to a showdown with Lee, should she win, of course.

"It’s the first time I heard that at that press conference, I’m so amazed. I didn’t feel any pressure. I have been more motivated since then. I want to show everyone, I could compete against Angela Lee."

Ham enters the bout undefeated inside the circle and with the No.2 ranking in the division. Should Itsuki Hirata deliver an impressive performance against the significantly more experienced South Korean, she will likely find herself with a world-title opportunity, something that Hirata knows will require a lot more effort in the gym to take advantage of:

"I can’t imagine how the five-minute five rounds fight will be. It’s almost a total of 30 mins fight. I need much more hard training, for a five-round game for sure. I think Angela has good grappling skills so I would like to use my striking skills then."