Nadaka’s Kickboxing Win Comes With A List Of Fixes: “I Need To Develop The Ability To Keep Pressuring”
A win in his first professional kickboxing bout should feel like pure celebration, but Nadaka Yoshinari left Yokohama with a list of things to fix instead.
The reigning ONE Atomweight Muay Thai World Champion defeated Har Ling Om by unanimous decision in the main event of ONE SAMURAI 3 on September 12 at Yokohama Buntai, extending his unbeaten run to 42 consecutive victories dating back to July 2019.
Nadaka had planned to wear his opponent down before finishing him late, but Har Ling Om grew increasingly durable and defensive as the fight progressed, denying him the emphatic performance he had envisioned.
“Because this was my kickboxing debut, I wanted to show everything I have developed up to this point and close the event with my best possible performance. I was able to win, but I couldn’t perform the way I had envisioned, so I am left with a lot of frustration,” he said.
That frustration sharpened into a specific goal for future kickboxing outings.
“My idea was to wear him down gradually and then finish him from the middle to the later stages of the fight. But from around the middle of the second round, he became very durable and defensive,” he said. “It made me realize I need to develop the ability to keep pressuring and finish an opponent who is focused on surviving.”
His Muay Thai instincts also surfaced in moments where the two rule sets diverged, offering another lesson in what needs adjusting.
“Early on, I got a little rushed and tried to do something I would normally do in Muay Thai. I was told it wasn’t allowed, and I thought, ‘Right, of course,'” he said. “There were several other moments where I thought, ‘If only this were Muay Thai.'”
There will be little time to dwell on the debut. Nadaka returns to Muay Thai next month to defend his world title against Rifdean Masdor at ONE SAMURAI 4, but the experience in Yokohama has already opened his mind to bigger ambitions.
“After doing kickboxing tonight, I don’t think competing in both sports is impossible. I felt new possibilities for myself, and this fight gave me another reason to keep getting stronger.”
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