Unbeaten ONE Champion Opens Up About Financial Struggles Despite Muay Thai World Title Wins

However, for 25-year-old Nadaka Yoshinari, becoming a champion did not immediately translate to a comfortable living from Muay Thai. Recently, the Japanese phenom uncovered the struggles behind his unblemished, unbeaten seven-year run to the top of ONE Championship's atomweight division. 

Nadaka Yoshinari had already won major titles in Thailand, but he wasn't making much money from fighting. The Japanese Muay Thai star started competing on the country’s stadium circuit as a teenager, juggling both schoolwork and  training while giving up much of the free time his friends had until he eventually became only the second non-Thai fighter to win titles at both Lumpinee and Rajadamnern Stadium.

Despite the breakthrough, the financial rewards still weren’t what he had hoped for. Now ahead of his title defense against  Rifdean “Magic Boy” Masdor at ONE SAMURAI 4 on Saturday at Tokyo's Ariake Arena, Nadaka has spoken about a time when travel expenses ate into his fight purses, and even a win could leave him with little to show for it. 

Nadaka Yoshinari Reveals Why Championship Wins Were Not Enough

Speaking to ONE Championship, the promotion's reigning Atomweight Muay Thai champion recalled just how difficult it was to reconcile his success inside the ring with his circumstances outside it.

He said, “Before I was a champion, I was actually fighting at a loss. Even after becoming champion, the purse money wasn’t (enough). The travel costs for fights ate into it. So, even with a win, I basically broke even." The realization became harder to ignore when the 25-year-old looked at what was happening to the people around him.

Reality came crashing down on him when he saw his friends who had finished high school and taken blue-collar jobs earning more than he was at just 18 or 19. Despite years of sacrifice and a growing list of achievements in Muay Thai, he was struggling to make the sport pay.

“Around then, I was watching friends who’d finished high school and gone straight into blue-collar jobs around 18 to 19, and I noticed a lot of them were making more money than me."

His frustration also went beyond money. Nadaka had expected championship success to bring recognition beyond the relatively small circle of people who followed Muay Thai closely. When that did not happen as quickly as he had hoped, he began questioning what he needed to do to establish himself.

“There was even a period where I thought winning belts alone would help and make me more famous,” he explained. The Yokosuka native eventually worked through those doubts with the help of his mentor, Eiwa Sports Gym chairman Natsuo Nakagawa. He acknowledged that the period was difficult, but still believes the experience helped shape the fighter he has become.

The ONE Championship Breakthrough

Nadaka’s breakthrough on the global stage came as ONE Championship expanded its Muay Thai offerings, including through ONE Friday Fights. Watching established names such as Rodtang Jitmuangnon, Tawanchai  P.K.Saenchai, and Superlek Kiatmuu9 build their reputations gave him a sense of clarity of what competing on a larger platform could mean.

He had already achieved something remarkable in the traditional stadium circuit, but he wanted to take those accomplishments to a wider audience and establish himself among the sport’s biggest names.

“Most of those fighters had won titles at either Rajadamnern or Lumpinee Stadium, and now that I’ve won those titles myself, I [always dreamed of wanting) to compete on that kind of stage. I wanted to make a name for myself and become a star too,” Nadaka said.

Nadaka Becomes Champ

That opportunity eventually arrived last year. Nadaka won the inaugural ONE atomweight Muay Thai world title by defeating Numsurin Chor Ketwina at ONE 173. He then defended the belt against Songchainoi “Mini-Hulk” Kiatsongrit at ONE SAMURAI 1, adding another major result to an already impressive career.

Since then, he remains unbeaten across six appearances in ONE, including a successful kickboxing debut against Har Ling Om at ONE SAMURAI 3. His run has extended to 42 consecutive victories, with more than seven years passing since his last defeat.

For the young champion, however, the ONE world title represented more than another championship to add to his collection. If anything, it gave him the recognition he had previously struggled to find and the confidence to speak more firmly about his place in the sport.

“After becoming a ONE World Champion, I feel like more people started calling me the best Muay Thai fighter in the world,” he said. “For me personally, winning the ONE belt also gave me the confidence to say without hesitation that I’m the best in Muay Thai. That’s something I’m extremely proud of.”