Out to prove his title conquest last time around was no fluke, ONE Championship world strawweight champion Alex “Little Rock” Silva seeks to do a repeat over former champ Yoshitaka Naito in their title rematch on May 12 in Jakarta, Indonesia.
Displaying a more evolved set of skills when they first met in December, Mr. Silva dominated Japanese Naito to seize the belt by unanimous decision.
Mr. Silva overwhelmed his opponent from the beginning of the bout, peppering Mr. Naito with lashing leg kicks and rocking right hands.
Although Mr. Silva had the upper hand in the first three rounds of the championship clash, he had to overcome a spirited performance from Mr. Naito, who did his best effort to wear down the Brazilian challenger in the last two rounds of the contest.
Relying on his exquisite Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu background, however, Mr. Silva managed to defend Mr. Naito’s grappling advances to walk out of the match with the belt wrapped around him.
“I was very emotional and excited. I talked to my corner men after every round, and they said I was doing okay and doing good, so I was pretty confident I would be the winner. I was very emotional and happy by the time they announced my name as the winner,” Mr. Silva shared.
The 35-year-old Silva (7-1) now seeks to accomplish an encore performance against Mr. Naito (12-1) in the event dubbed “ONE: Grit and Glory” at the Jakarta Convention Center.
He was quick to say though that he is expecting an even tougher challenge from the Japanese, who he knows will do everything he can to get back the strawweight title.
“He was the champion for a good reason. He is tough as nails. Giving up is not his style. But with all due respect, I am determined to keep my belt. I am confident of my skills. My martial arts, my grappling, my conditioning — all of that makes me confident,” Mr. Silva said.
“I do not want to just be the world champion. I want to be the best ever in this division. I work hard, I have the discipline, and I have everything on my side to do it. I have a good team around me, I have the dedication, I have the skills, and I am hungry. So that is my new goal, to become the best athlete to ever compete in this division,” he added as to how he is going about his standing as a champion.
Also seeing action at Grit and Glory are Filipinos Eric “The Natural” Kelly and Rome Trinidad.
Mr. Kelly faces off with Japanese Tetsuya Yamada in a catchweight at 72 kg while Ms. Trinidad takes on hometown bet Pricilla Hertati Lumbangaol in a women’s atomweight battle. — Michael Angelo S. Murillo
