 |
| Danny Kingad faceoff with Tatsumitsu Wada Photo from Danny "The King" Kingad Facebook page |
Compiling three consecutive wins last year, including one touted as 'Bout of the Year', Danny “The King” Kingad is raring to make his presence felt inside the cage once again. For this upcoming fight with Japanese contender Tatsumitsu “The Sweeper” Wada at the Mall of Asia Arena this coming January 25th, he is moving closer to another title shot at ONE Flyweight World Title.
But the Filipino MMA fighter from Baguio City’s Team Lakay will take on a Japanese fighter who is coming off an impressive first-round submission win against another Filipino, Eugene Toquero, in just 52 seconds of the very first round. And he's no pushover - Wada won Japan's DEEP Flyweight title twice.
Know Your Enemy
Upon learning of his next bout, “The King” wasted no time preparing for the fight. “When I learned that he would be my opponent, I prepared myself because he is good on the ground,” Kingad said as posted on OneFC.com. “So, that’s why I’m now preparing to knock him down.”
After studying the fight tapes of his opponent, Kingad believes that Wada has a very dominant ground game. But he is readying himself to fight back with the combination of striking and wrestling, “In my opinion, my advantage against Wada is my striking, and my wrestling as well,” Kingad said.
Kingad added, “I will match Wada’s background in karate and judo using my background in wushu sanshou because wushu sanshou also has striking and takedowns.”
Shot at the ONE Flyweight World Title
With the upcoming bout at ONE: HERO’S ASCENT, Kingad wishes to step closer to his ultimate dream of capturing the ONE Flyweight World Title. But his dream will depend on the result of the event's main bout, a third match between reigning ONE Flyweight champion Geje “Gravity” and Adriano “Mikinho” Moraes, himself a former Flyweight champion.
According to Kingad, "I would not fight with Geje because as I’ve said, I respect him so much because he is my senior." He added, “If we fought each other, it would ruin our bond as a family. It would ruin our brotherhood.”
“I’ll fight whoever they want me to fight – except Geje,” Kingad reveals.
“My ultimate goal is to be a World Champion, so it is really important to keep training. Otherwise, you won’t be a World Champion,” Kingad said.
