ONE Championship: Aung La N Sang eyes Yushin Okami fight en route to Reinier de Ridder trilogy
- After losing the ONE light heavyweight and middleweight titles to Reinier de Ridder, Aung La N Sang rebounded with a knockout win over Leandro Ataides
- “The Burmese Python” looks to keep momentum going by fighting Japanese veteran Yushin Okami
“The Burmese Python” Aung La N Sang wants back on the ONE Championship middleweight throne, and believes a fight with Japanese veteran Yushin Okami will push him in that direction.
N Sang, 36, previously ruled over the ONE middleweight and light heavyweight divisions, but lost both titles to suffocating Dutch grappler Reinier de Ridder in a six-month span between October last year and April.
It was an undeniably tough stretch for N Sang (27-12), but one he was able to put behind him when he knocked out Brazilian middleweight Leandro Ataides at the ONE: Battleground event in July.
“It was very satisfying – especially with all the work that I put in and all the hardships I went through – to be able to prove the doubters wrong [and show] that I’m still growing, that I’m still getting better as a mixed martial artist, and to go put a stamp on it by beating a guy [with] a controversial loss to Reinier,” N Sang told the Post this week, looking back on his thrilling win over Ataides. “It was a good statement that I made.”
With a big win over Ataides completed, N Sang is eager for his next challenge in the ONE Championship circle, and views Japanese veteran Yushin Okami (37-14), who previously contended for the UFC middleweight title, as a fitting opponent.