“It’s a very scary thing” - Johan Ghazali wants to adopt Superlek and Liam Harrison’s most vicious strikes
Teen phenom Johan Ghazali is a fan of the striking of veterans Superlek Kiatmoo9 and Liam Harrison and is working on incorporating certain facets of them in his game.
'Jojo' spoke about it in an interview with ONE Championship ahead of his scheduled debut in the United States on Sept. 6 at ONE 168: Denver. He shared that he has be following the careers of Superlek and Harrison and is quite impressed with the elbows of the former and the left hook of the latter, which he believes together can be potent in one's arsenal.
Ghazali, 17, said:
"I think Superlek's elbows are the best I've seen. They're very good, they sneak up on you, you can't see them. So, Superlek's elbows and Liam Harrison's left hook... It's a very scary thing, you know."
At ONE 168, Johan Ghazali will go up against Mexican Josue Cruz in a flyweight Muay Thai clash. He is out to secure a bounce-back win after losing in his previous fight in June.
Incidentally, both Superlek and Harrison are slated to compete as well at ONE 168. The Thai superstar will vie for the ONE bantamweight Muay Thai world title against reigning divisional king Jonathan Haggerty while 'Hitman' makes his long-awaited return to competition against fellow veteran fighter Seksan Or Kwanmuang in a catchweight Muay Thai showdown.
ONE 168 will take place at the Ball Arena in Denver and air live and for free in U.S. primetime to North American fans with an active Amazon Prime Video subscription. Tickets for the event are available on Ticketmaster.
Johan Ghazali says they have made changes to his game following first setback
Coming off his first defeat in his previous fight, Malaysian-American fighter Johan Ghazali said they made changes to his game, which he is looking to employ at ONE 168: Denver on Sept. 6.
The 17-year-old Rentap Muaythai Gym affiliate lost to veteran Nguyen Tran Duy Nhat of Vietnam by unanimous decision in their clash in June. It is something he looks to redeem himself from in his United States debut against Mexican Josue Cruz.
To see his redemption push succeed, Johan Ghazali said he and his team tinkered with his game to come up with a better performance at ONE 168.
He told Sportskeeda MMA in an interview:
"Yes, yes, of course. We've implemented a lot of things. We've trained our footwork, how to move forward, how to cut off the circle, and yeah, we've changed a few things."
Looking to send Ghazali to a second straight defeat, meanwhile, is Cruz, 28, who is gunning for a breakthrough victory after losing in his first two fights in ONE Championship.