Yuya Wakamatsu suggests Adriano Moraes underestimated his striking heading into ONE 172: "I was ready to prove him wrong"

Yuya Wakamatsu thinks that Adriano Moraes made a huge mistake in their championship rematch at ONE 172 when he shrugged off the threat of the Japanese superstar's striking.

'Little Piranha' got one back against 'Mikinho' with a first-round TKO win to become the new undisputed king of the ONE flyweight MMA division at the packed Lumpinee Stadium crowd in Japan on March 23.

During his recent interview with My Navi News, Wakamatsu claimed that he added Moraes' belittling of his striking as a motivation to get the win, as he explained:

"Yes, that's right. If you were to outbox your opponent, you always stand a better chance at victory. He's so good, and even if he said that my striking wouldn't affect him, I was ready to prove him wrong and put it all on the line."

Watch Yuya Wakamatsu's interview here:

Aside from avenging his defeat from the Brazilian submission specialist and capturing the 26-pound golden belt, the 30-year-old athlete has also recorded his fourth successive victory in the promotion.

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Yuya Wakamatsu says that he was prepared for Adriano Moraes' signature knee strikes at ONE 172

The Tribe Tokyo MMA representative wasn't just wary of the American Top Team and Constrictor Team-affiliated athlete's elite grappling skills during their second meeting, he was also on the lookout for his patented knee strikes.

According to Wakamatsu, he needed to stay alert against it to avoid any danger in the striking exchanges, as he said during his interview with My Navi News in a recent interview:

"I think, based on the fight clip, he did try it twice, but I really felt like he was just feinting. And I was sure that Adriano would have landed a knee right after the takedown attempt. So I stayed a bit cautious before I caught him."

Fans can rewatch all the action from the ONE 172: Takeru vs. Rodtang card via watch.onefc.com.