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Victoria Souza knows that getting a win over Japanese star Itsuki Hirata will be no easy task.
After losing two of her first three appearances under the ONE Championship banner, 'Vick' will step into the Circle at ONE 167 desperate to score her first win since a victory over Linda Darrow at ONE Fight Night 7 last year.
Standing in her way will be 'Android 18,' one of the atomweight division's fastest-rising sensations.
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Speaking ONE Championship ahead of her second fight of 2024, Victoria Souza shared her assessment of Hirata's skills, saying:
“Itsuki Hirata is a high-level athlete with a lot of experience in ONE. She has an excellent game in both striking and grappling. In whatever area the fight develops, she will be a difficult opponent, and this makes her very dangerous.”
Overall, Souza is a solid 7-2 in her mixed martial arts career, but after suffering losses against the late Victoria Lee and Noelle Grandjean, a win will go a long way toward getting closer to the atomweight MMA rankings.
Itsuki Hirata determined to snap a two-fight losing skid against Victoria Souza
Like Victoria Souza, Itsuki Hirata has had her fair share of adversity in recent years.
After kickstarting her run with the promotion scoring four straight wins — including three finishes — Hirata has hit a wall, dropping three of her last four. After coming up short on the scorecards against Jihin Radzuan, she bounced back with a win over Lin Heqin.
Unfortunately, the success was short-lived as she would go on to lose back-to-back bouts against No.1-ranked contender Ham Seo Hee and Ayaka Miurua.
Hoping to keep her own title hopes alive, Hirata will undoubtedly come out determined to see her hand raised, snapping a streak of bad luck and re-establishing herself as one of the division's most dangerous opponents.
ONE Championship fans in the United States and Canada can watch ONE 167 live and for free via Amazon Prime Video in U.S. primetime on Friday, June 7.
