Mei Yamaguchi promises knockout win in rematch with Angela Lee
Ahead of her bout at ONE: IMMORTAL PURSUIT in Singapore on 24 November, Mei ‘V.V.’ Yamaguchi is a woman on a mission.
The 34-year-old from Tokyo, Japan, has been working her way back to the top of the ONE Championship atomweight division, in a bid to face defending champion Angela ‘Unstoppable’ Lee in a rematch following their memorable first encounter a year and a half ago.
Their bout at ONE: ASCENT TO POWER in May 2016 was considered by many to be one of the best women’s bouts of the year, if not all time.
Both athletes battled toe-to-toe on the feet, and grappled back and forth on the mat in a thrilling contest. After two closely-contested rounds, Yamaguchi dropped the champion and looked close to securing a knockout victory.
However, Lee rallied and recovered to earn the win via unanimous decision, leaving Yamaguchi wondering what might have been. But the Japanese veteran said she took great pride from her performance, saying: “If I had won, it would have been perfect.
“But still, even though I lost, a lot of people told me they cheered me and said, ‘Congratulations,’ so I did not feel bad. It was okay, because I was able to make the audience excited. That is the thing — I want to keep doing that as a professional athlete.”
Ever since that loss, Yamaguchi has been determined to claw her way back to a rematch, but her plans to bounce back immediately went awry when she lost a split decision to Brazilian knockout artist Istela Nunes at ONE: HEROES OF THE WORLD — a bout Yamaguchi believed she did enough to win.
‘V.V.’ went back to the gym and continued working on her game. She launched herself into competitive jiu jitsu, earning a third-place finish at the IBJJF World Championships in June.
That success on the mats served as a springboard to her performances in the cage, as she returned to ONE Championship with a second-round rear-naked choke victory over former world title challenger Jenny ‘Lady GoGo’ Huang at ONE: LIGHT OF A NATION in Yangon.
Her finish of Huang was notable for the fact that she did so a full round faster than defending champion Lee had managed.
“I wanted to finish with a rear-naked choke,” Yamaguchi explained. “That was what my coaches and I were planning, and my mission was completed.”
The win, and the experience of competing in Yangon, left a real impression on Yamaguchi, who admits her experience in Myanmar inspired her to achieve greater heights in her career.
“The event was really packed and that was kind of amazing,” she recalled. “I realised a lot of people see me as a female martial artist who inspires a lot of people in Asia. So to compete in places like Myanmar, it really makes me realise that I need to continue being an athlete who can inspire a lot more people in those places.”
While Yamaguchi has been working her way back to a title shot, defending Atomweight World Champion Lee has gone from strength to strength.
The Singapore superstar stopped Huang via TKO at ONE: WARRIOR KINGDOM, then followed up that performance with a submission win over Nunes via anaconda choke at ONE: DYNASTY OF HEROES. The latter was made all the more remarkable given the fact she’d been suffering with pneumonia in the lead-up to the contest.
While Lee has noticeably improved over her recent contests, Yamaguchi insists her game has ramped up, too, and she says she’s heading into their hotly-anticipated rematch with renewed confidence.
“Angela had two title defences and I had two matches, so I think Angela has more confidence by having two title matches and finishing both matches in the early rounds. That will give her a lot of confidence,” she explained.
“For me, I lost against Istela, but thought I won that match, and I finished Jenny Huang, so that gave me a lot of confidence, too.
“The most important thing about being a martial artist is having good technique and good heart. Not everyone can get this chance to compete for a world title. I’ve got this chance, so that has given me confidence as a martial artist.”
Yamaguchi’s mantra throughout her journey towards the rematch has been consistent. “Be brave, keep challenging everything, and never stop doing the things you want to do,” she stated. “I always say that to myself.”
That tremendous self-motivation has powered her to a rematch with Lee, and another chance to capture the belt, at ONE: IMMORTAL PURSUIT. It’s a chance she says she’s going to take in decisive fashion
“It is going to end early,” she stated. “It will be a clear finish by me. It is going to be a knockout.”
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