{"id":625070,"date":"2026-04-23T05:28:08","date_gmt":"2026-04-23T05:28:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/625070\/"},"modified":"2026-04-23T05:28:08","modified_gmt":"2026-04-23T05:28:08","slug":"aiming-for-the-belt-chihiro-sawada-eyes-world-title-shot-with-victory-over-ayaka-miura-at-one-samurai-1","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/625070\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018Aiming For The Belt\u2019 \u2013 Chihiro Sawada Eyes World Title Shot With Victory Over Ayaka Miura At ONE SAMURAI 1"},"content":{"rendered":"

Chihiro Sawada<\/a> has her sights set firmly on 26 pounds of gold, and she knows exactly what stands between her and a shot at the belt.<\/p>\n

The 28-year-old takes on former ONE World Title challenger Ayaka \u201cZombie\u201d Miura<\/a> in a crucial atomweight MMA showdown at ONE SAMURAI 1<\/a>, which emanates from the Ariake Arena in Tokyo, Japan, on Wednesday, April 29. The historic show will broadcast live on pay-per-view via live.onefc.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n

With the winner potentially earning a crack at reigning ONE Women\u2019s Atomweight MMA World Champion Denice \u201cThe Menace\u201d Zamboanga<\/a>, the stakes could not be higher for this all-Japanese clash.<\/p>\n

Sawada enters this pivotal contest with an impressive 11-1 career record, including a 6-1 run in the promotion. Currently riding a three-bout winning streak, the wrestling-based fighter has established herself as one of the division\u2019s most dangerous grapplers.<\/p>\n

Her opponent, Miura, previously competed at strawweight, where she challenged for the ONE Women\u2019s Strawweight MMA World Championship in 2022. But since moving down a weight class in 2024, the \u201cZombie\u201d has compiled a four-fight winning streak and has positioned herself as the atomweight division\u2019s leading contender.<\/p>\n

Sawada paid close attention to her compatriot\u2019s activity in recent years, and she realized very quickly that a battle with her was inevitable:<\/p>\n

\u201cSince the time that she dropped down in weight, I thought eventually we would have an all-Japanese matchup. So, I\u2019ve always been prepared to fight her at any time.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sawada\u2019s fighting style centers on her decorated wrestling background, which provides the foundation for everything she accomplishes inside the ring.<\/p>\n

That elite grappling base allows her to dictate where the action takes place, forcing opponents to defend takedowns while creating opportunities for ground-and-pound and submissions.<\/p>\n

Sawada, however, has evolved in recent years, and she has proven to be more than a one-dimensional fighter. Her striking development has reached a level where she can credibly threaten opponents on the feet while setting up her takedown entries, as displayed in her unanimous decision victory<\/a> over American sensation Natalie Salcedo<\/a> this past January.<\/p>\n

She said:<\/p>\n

\u201cMy fighting style is probably using my strong wrestling ability in positions where I can dominate and combining it with striking. I realized that later on, but since wrestling is my foundation, I train every day focusing on striking to set up my wrestling.\u201d<\/p>\n

When it comes to breaking down the \u201cZombie,\u201d Sawada leaves no doubt that she has studied her opponent thoroughly.<\/p>\n

She understands exactly what makes Miura \u2013 a third-degree judo black belt with 16 career wins \u2013 so difficult to deal with and exactly where she believes the gaps are.<\/p>\n

Sawada, the inaugural Shooto Atomweight Champion, explained:<\/p>\n

\u201cShe\u2019s a fighter who can impose her strength and specialty. Also, she\u2019s incredibly flexible. I often hear that her shoulders are very flexible. Her strengths are the Ayaka Lock, her judo throws, and her hip strength.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs for weaknesses, her striking is a bit behind, and she doesn\u2019t move laterally as much. I believe my overall MMA ability is better since MMA includes striking, so I think I have the advantage there.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sawada Plans To Neutralize The \u2018Ayaka Lock\u2019<\/p>\n

Chihiro Sawada knows everyone enters the ring against Ayaka Miura with a plan to avoid her signature \u201cAyaka Lock.\u201d<\/p>\n

The 28-year-old has watched countless opponents prepare specifically for Miura\u2019s trademark submission, only to find themselves trapped in the scarf-hold Americana that has become the veteran\u2019s calling card. But the Japanese wrestler doesn\u2019t plan to be another statistic.<\/p>\n

She revealed her strategy to counter the infamous submission hold:<\/p>\n

\u201cEveryone knows about the \u2018Ayaka Lock,\u2019 but they still get caught in it. I don\u2019t want to get caught in it. I\u2019ve prepared for it, and I don\u2019t think I will get caught. But anything can happen in a fight, so I want to disrupt her game to the point where she can\u2019t even think about the \u2018Ayaka Lock.\u2019<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd in MMA, I believe I\u2019m superior, so I plan to win convincingly. When it comes to grappling, I can handle myself too.\u201d<\/p>\n

The stakes couldn\u2019t be clearer. While Sawada initially hoped this fight would be for a World Championship, it instead could serve as a final hurdle to get that opportunity.<\/p>\n

Now, she could be just one victory away from the ONE Women\u2019s Atomweight MMA World Title shot she\u2019s been chasing, and she plans to state her case for a crack at the gold on April 29.<\/p>\n

Sawada offered:<\/p>\n

\u201cI thought this fight might be for the title, but since it\u2019s not, I need to overcome this challenge to get closer to the title. So, I want to win this fight and move on to a championship bout.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve always wanted to win the title, and since joining ONE, I\u2019ve been aiming for the belt. My goal hasn\u2019t changed \u2013 to win a title in ONE as a Japanese female fighter.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Chihiro Sawada has her sights set firmly on 26 pounds of gold, and she knows exactly what stands…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":625071,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[570],"tags":[64,63,786,785,85],"class_list":["post-625070","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-mma","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-fighting","tag-mma","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/625070","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=625070"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/625070\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/625071"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=625070"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=625070"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=625070"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}