“I go crazy sometimes” - Teenage phenom Johan Ghazali reveals the ideal number of matches he wants per year
Teenage phenom Johan Ghazali is not one to stay idle for long periods of time and wants to be out there competing frequently in ONE Championship as much as possible
'Jojo' shared this in a conversation with combat sports journalist Nic Atkin following his most recent victory at ONE 168 at the Ball Arena in Denver, Colorado, U.S.A. He said if he would have his way, he wants to have at least four fights every year moving forward.
Johan Ghazali said:
"If my year went perfectly. I feel like the gaps between my last fight and this fight was alright. I'm comfortable with that. So what was it June, until now? So, yeah, maybe four fights a year, five fights a year. Four is enough because I want to take some time off as well. I don't want to be on the gym all day, every day. It's okay, but I go crazy sometimes."
Check out what he had to say below:
Johan Ghazali scored a first-round knockout win over Mexican opponent Josue Cruz in their catchweight (142 pounds) Muay Thai clash in Denver. He used a ferocious finish, which culminated in a devastating left hook in the closing seconds, to score the impressive win.
It was bounce-back win for the 17-year-old Malaysian-American fighter after absorbing his first defeat in ONE in his previous fight in June.
The full replay of ONE 168 is available on demand for Prime Video subscribers in the United States and Canada.
Johan Ghazali took motivation from first ONE loss in win in Denver
Johan Ghazali entered ONE 168: Denver on Sept. 6 coming off his first loss in ONE Championship. It was something he said he used as motivation to come up with a victory.
The Sarawak, Malaysia-based fighter was dealt his first defeat in the promotion by veteran Vietnamese fighter Nguyen Tran Duy Nhat back in June by way of decision. While he admitted to being disappointed by it, he used the setback to craft a better game plan for a rebound win at ONE 168.
Ghazali shared to sports reporter Alex Wendling following his knockout victory in Denver over Mexican Josue Cruz:
"I'm happy it went the way it did [referring to the Nguyen defeat]. It just gives me more chances to improve, and that what I showed today. It helped me get extra determination to bounce back."
Watch the interview below:
The KO win at ONE 168 was the fifth for Johan Ghazali, who now has a 6-1 record in ONE Championship.