Photo: ONE Championship
Jin Tae Ho Goes Full Kazushi Sakuraba at ONE 156
Jin Tae Ho Looks Like he’s a fan of Kazushi Sakuraba
Jin Tae Ho looks like he’s a fan of UFC Hall of famer, Kazushi Sakuraba and if that was not known before the ONE 156 event from Friday, it is certainly known now.
You rarely get to see any individuality in what is considered the top levels of MMA. Your average MMA fan is generally a UFC fan who is familiar with uniforms in a promotion with standard cuts and colors available to them based on who the apparel partner is. Sure, you may get a quick dance number once in a blue-moon, but that’s not expected.
ONE Championship does things a little differently and Jin took full advantage of the platform from when he made his entrance, to how he won his welterweight bout against Agilan Thani.
As he walked into the cage he wore a pro-wrestling mask and the well-known orange shorts of Kazushi Sakuraba with the “KS” logo on full display. When he and Thani faced off, Thani went in for the body lock to take down Jin and succeeded, but Jin was quickly back to his feet with Thani on his back. From here, Jin took fans on a visual reenactment of Sakuraba’s victory over Renzo Gracie at Pride 10 in August of 2000.
In the Sakuraba/Gracie fight, similarly from standing back control, Sakuraba sunk in the kimura (or double-wrist grab depending on your preference) and was able to reverse the position and get Gracie to the ground, winning the bout by technical submission due to the dislocation of Gracie’s elbow.
Jin’s version was not so gruesome since Thani tapped to save his arm, but if you were a fan of Pride Fighting Championships, you were probably a fan of Kazushi Sakuraba so the win was great on so many levels. Have a look at Jin’s version:
Jin Tae Ho 🇰🇷 pays tribute to Sakuraba with a nasty kimura finish of Agilan Thani! 💪#ONE156 #WeAreONE #ONEChampionship | How To Watch 👉 https://t.co/t1U58xACAx pic.twitter.com/MNm818yXDt
— ONE Championship (@ONEChampionship) April 22, 2022
Afterward, Jin said in his post-fight interview that he hoped Sakuraba saw it and would be honored to meet him after winning in that fashion. The technique is one he also said he practices a lot in training. Likely due to the fighter he seems to look up to so much.
This puts him on a six-fight win streak too, so expect to see those shorts again. ONE 156 aired on the ONE Championship YouTube channel where you can replay the entire event.
