Yuki Yoza only wants to finish his fights: “Anything other than a knockout feels like a loss”

Japanese striker Yuki Yoza said nothing beats a victory by way of knockout. If he has his way, he wants to win each of his matches by stopping his opponents in such a manner.

He spoke about it in one of the recent episodes on his official YouTube channel. The 27-year-old Team Vasileus standout used his most recent victory over former bantamweight kickboxing world champion Petchtanong Petchfergus in July to drive home his point, highlighting how badly he wanted to KO the Thai star before settling for the decision win.

Yuki Yoza said:

"I really wanted to finish him [Petchtanong] off. But he’s so good at disguising his attacks. He’s strong. He’s good. Although I beat Petchtanong, I don’t really feel like I won. My left hook and some of my other attacks were on target - and I’m happy with that. That made me happy. Overall, I can say my fight against Petchtanong went according to plan. I knew it would turn out like that...

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"But, damn, I’m really frustrated with myself after the loss. I wish I had taken him down. For me, anything other than a knockout feels like a loss, you know? But if I were a bit more sharp, I definitely could have caught him."

Check out what he had to say below:

The win over Petchtanong was the second straight for Yoza since he made his ONE Championship debut in May. In his maiden outing, he also won by decision over Russian powerhouse Elbrus Osmanov.

Yuki Yoza currently holds a professional kickboxing and Muay Thai record of 21-2, with nine of his victories coming by way of KO and TKO.

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Yuki Yoza all fired up for huge match against Superlek at ONE 173

Yuki Yoza returns to action later this year in a huge match against Thai superstar Superlek Kiatmoo9. It is a matchup that the Tsuchiura, Japan native is looking forward to and all fired up for.

The two top-notch strikers are pitted against each other in a bantamweight kickboxing showdown at ONE 173: Superbon vs. Noiri on Nov. 16 at the Ariake Arena in Tokyo.

In an interview with ONE Championship, Yoza shared his thoughts on facing off with 'The Kicking Machine', particularly how he sees it as a grand opportunity to show that he is one of the best in the game right now.

The former K-1 champion said:

"It feels amazing to return to fight in Japan. I’m fired up and ready to prove I’m the best in the world!"

Yuki Yoza has won his last 12 matches, the last two in ONE Championship, and out to sustain the impressive streak.

Superlek, for his part, returns to kickboxing after competing in Muay Thai in his last three matches and losing in his most recent match in March against Nabil Anane.

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Edited by Aziel Karthak