Yuya Wakamatsu says Adriano Moraes didn’t have his usual grappling strength at ONE 172 matchup: “Didn’t feel like he was ready”

Yuya Wakamatsu knew something was off when he faced off against Adriano Moraes in Japan.

The Japanese standout captured the biggest win of his career when he stopped Moraes in the first round to claim the vacant ONE flyweight MMA world title at the stacked ONE 172 card on Sunday at the historic Saitama Super Arena.

In an interview with My Navi News, Wakamatsu said he expected Moraes' usual suffocating grappling to be in full effect.

Wakamatsu, however, was surprised when he didn't feel the same pressure that Moraes used when they squared off for the first time in March 2022. He said:

"I was in better shape than I thought. So when he got to try and grapple, it wasn’t like it was a piece of cake, but I didn’t feel like he was ready to go in [for the takedown]."

Moraes, a former eight-time ONE flyweight MMA world champion, stuck to his advantage and tried to take Wakamatsu down early in the fight.

Wakamatsu, however, managed to escape Moraes' traps and brought the fight back to the middle of the ring, where he used his striking advantage to dictate the pace in the first round.

After forcing the action near the corner, Wakamatsu unloaded a barrage of strikes that broke through Moraes' guard.

Wakamatsu continued his assault on a curled up Moraes on the ground, eventually forcing referee Herb Dean to call a stop to the contest 3:39 into the first round.

The win didn't just elevate Wakamatsu to the flyweight MMA throne, it also served as 'Little Piranha's' revenge fight after losing to Moraes via submission at ONE X in Singapore.

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Yuya Wakamatsu says his boxing proved to be the difference-maker against Adriano Moraes at ONE 172

Yuya Wakamatsu was confident that he'd always have the striking advantage over Adriano Moraes, and he used that venom to great potency at ONE 172.

The natural striker overwhelmed Moraes with his aggressive stand-up to capture the vacant ONE flyweight MMA world title in front of his home fans at Saitama Super Arena.

He said in the same interview with My Navi News:

"I believe my keys to victory were my strategy and all the countermeasures that were well done. My strikes were solid, I feel like I was able to punch without getting involved in too much ground game."

Watch Wakamatsu's entire interview below: