“I thought I wasn’t going to make it” - Bianca Basilio reveals she fought through injury in training camp ahead of ONE Fight Night 22
Bianca Basilio's fight didn't start when she faced off against Nanami Ichikawa this past weekend.
The multi-time Brazilian jiu-jitsu world champion admitted in her in-ring interview with ONE Championship commentator Mitch Chilson that she suffered a couple of injuries mere weeks before ONE Fight Night 22.
Basilio, who holds world titles from the IBJJF and ADCC, revealed to Chilson that she tweaked her knee during her training camp. but that didn't keep her from claiming the dominant submission win over Ichikawa.
Following her fight inside the hallowed Lumpinee Boxing Stadium, Bianca Basilio said:
"Actually, two weeks ago, I had an injury on my knee, and last week during training I got an injury again. So I'm very happy, I thought I wasn't going to make it, but I did it, I made it. So I'm very happy about it"
The Brazilian star may have revealed she suffered a couple of injuries in training camp, but those mishaps never showed its symptoms during the fight.
Basilio was methodical as ever and she quickly turned Ichikawa's aggression to her favor.
After Ichikawa initiated the offense, Basilio quickly scrambled and took the Japanese star's back before locking in the tight rear-naked choke for the submission win just 35 seconds into the match.
The victory was a huge bounce-back win for Basilio after she lost in her last matchup against Tammi Musumeci at ONE Fight Night 8.
Bianca Basilio eyes move to MMA
Bianca Basilio has already established herself as one of the best submission grapplers on the planet, and she now wants to test herself in the realm of MMA.
After her submission win over Ichikawa, the ADCC and IBJJF world champion told Mitch Chilson in the same interview that she's looking at a potential move to MMA and is hopeful of taking a shot at ONE women's strawweight MMA world champion Xiong Jing Nan. She said:
"I'm also preparing myself for an MMA debut and I would love to fight in MMA here."
The replay of ONE Fight Night 22 is available for free to all Prime Video subscribers in the United States and Canada.