Bi Nguyen Responds To Itsuki Hirata Call Out & Calls Out Top Contender
Having not competed since last November, Bi Nguyen can’t wait to return to the ONE Circle. Despite the global coronavirus pandemic making it virtually impossible to participate in full-contact training, the Vietnamese-American, has found other methods of staying at the top of her game.
Speaking to ONE Championship, Nguyen stated that she is confident that she will be in the best version of herself when he returns.
“I’m staying in shape. I’m running, I’m doing home workouts, and I’ve been hitting the bag. I just haven’t been doing full-contact training. All in all, my mental state is good, and I’m motivated,” said Nguyen.
“There are times where you’re going hard during a fight camp and you’re not focusing on the small things, so right now is a great opportunity to drill my footwork, shadowboxing, and movement with fast-twitch muscles. I think when I come back and I’m able to put on a big camp, [fans will see] a better version of me.”
During her time away from competition, ‘Killer Bee’ has been eyeing the ONE atomweight division. In one of ONE’s most stacked divisions, Nguyen has one opponent in mind, Mei Yamaguchi.
“It’s no secret that I’ve been wanting to fight Mei Yamaguchi. She’s top-ranked and I’ve been a fan of hers for a long time. It’s going to be one of those times in your life where your idols become your opposition.”
Yamaguchi is currently ranked number-four in the ONE atomweight rankings and although Nguyen respects the 37-year-old veteran, she believes that she would have the advantage if they faced each other inside the ONE Circle.
“Mei is such a well-oiled machine. She’s so well-rounded everywhere. She has so much experience in striking, wrestling, and grappling. But I just think I’m more dynamic and aggressive.
“I think the edge I would have in this fight is more dynamic striking and the fact people haven’t seen everything from me. The fans have seen a lot of striking from me, but they haven’t seen everything that I can do. And we’ve seen almost everything Mei can do because she’s been around for so long and fought top-ranked fighters for a long time.”
But there is also another opponent who has grabbed Nguyen’s attention, Itsuki Hirata. The Japanese star recently issued a challenge to ‘Killer Bee’ and since joining ONE, has finished all three of her opponents.
The two were originally due to face off at ONE: Warrior’s Code but Nguyen was forced to withdraw from the fight due to an injury. ‘Killer Bee’ would also accept a fight with the ‘Strong Heart Fighter’. However, she thinks there’s an ulterior motive behind the 20-year-old calling her out.
“She’s been on social media calling me out to fight. I’ve signed the contract to fight her before, so that’s silly. She’s just calling me out right now to avoid fighting Stamp. What concerned me about the Itsuki callout though is that she said she’s not yet ready for Stamp Fairtex, but she wants to fight me. I find that a little insulting. Definitely, if ONE chooses to put me against Itsuki again, I would accept it. But for me, the fight I want right now is with Mei Yamaguchi.”
ONE returns at the end of the month with ONE: No Surrender, but with the global restrictions still in place as a result of the coronavirus, it’s not known when Nguyen will return, or who will be across the ONE Circle from her when she does. But regardless, the 30 year old promises to put on a show for the fans when she finally returns.
“Every fight that I’ve had has been entertaining because I put everything out there, so fans can expect me to be that same exciting, aggressive fighter. I enjoy the competition so much that sometimes I prolong it and don’t take the smart route to get the finish. Fans can expect the same exciting fighter, but this time I’m going to take the smarter route and go for finishes,” Nguyen said.
“It’s actually more exciting for me to think about how I will perform. When I come back, I think it’s going to be fireworks. I’m just ready to get in the ring. I miss it so much.”
Who would you like to see Bi Nguyen’s face next inside the ONE Circle?
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