Itsuki Hirata took ONE Championship by storm when she first made her debut. However, recent losses have stymied her ascent toward the atomweight crown. At ONE 167: Tawanchai vs. Nattawut II on Friday, June 7, she has a chance to get back in the win column against Victoria Souza.
“I want to show my strengths and the determination to win no matter what. Instead of waiting, I’ll attack first. If I can win that way, I don’t have to fight a full 15 minutes. The sooner it ends, the better. I’ll go on the offensive from the start so I don’t have to fight for 15 minutes,” Hirata stated to ONE.
Hirata has spent time rounding out her skill set, but back in Japan, she feels more comfortable with where her training is heading into ONE 167. She also feels confident she will have a physical advantage over her Brazilian opponent as well. The combination has “Android 18” feeling confident.
“Since I’m a bit bigger, my reach will be different, and if I can strike smartly, I think I’ll have opportunities in the stand-up. And in grappling, if I take her down, I think I can ground-and-pound from the top, so I’ll fight without losing focus for even a second.”
Hirata has faltered against top talents such as Ham Seo Hee and Ayaka Miura. At ONE 167, she wants to avoid starting a real losing streak. But more than stemming the tide, Hirata wants to get back to showing off her incredible ground game.
Although the Japanese star will do whatever it takes to win, she wants the tap. Souza’s BJJ game has Hirata excited for what could become a grappling battle when the bell rings. If it plays out on the mat, Hirata wants to make a firm statement that she is back in a major way.
“I’m confident I can get a finish, and I want to get a finish. I want to beat a strong grappler with grappling. I’ll mix it up without overly sticking to one thing. But if I can get a submission, make her tap out, that would feel great.”
The silver lining to Hirata’s recent defeats is how she has handled losing. “Android 18” never buckled under the weight of her losses and instead has found learning from those past mistakes helps her grow as an athlete. The mental shift has allowed her to become more free and accepting without crumbling under the pressure to solely win.
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“Before, I didn’t even want to get hit. I didn’t want to lose or fail in training. But after losing, I realized that training is a place to fail. I fail a lot. I get beaten by female fighters and amateur fighters too. Before, I was being stubborn, but I changed my mindset, and it became easier.”
At ONE 167, Hirata is coming to put on the best performance possible. As long as she leaves everything inside the Circle, she will be satisfied. Her new mindset could make her an even more ferocious opponent; not playing it safe and going for the win without fear of victory doesn’t happen.
“Thanks to Coach Osawa, instead of just being tense, I can relax and do it. My thinking is completely different from when I was thinking about winning alone, like, ‘It’s okay to lose, just do what I can do.”
ONE 167 airs live on Prime Video on Friday, June 7. The action begins at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT. The event is free for all Amazon Prime members in the U.S. and Canada.
