ONE Championship: Little Adjustments For Danny Kingad

Danny “The King” Kingad has made some little changes in training camp, as he is slated to face a new opponent in the semifinals of the ONE Flyweight World Grand Prix.

He will now be facing Reece “Lightning” McLaren at ONE: DAWN OF HEROES, which broadcasts live from the Mall Of Asia Arena in Manila, Philippines on Friday, 2 August.

“The King” was originally set to face former ONE Flyweight World Champion Kairat “The Kazakh” Akhmetov, but the latter had to withdraw from the match due to injury.

While most training programs would be interrupted with a change in opponent, Kingad’s camp goes on as they know McLaren will be presenting the same kind of threat that Akhmetov brings.

“I don’t think there’s much difference in training. It’s pretty much the same, they’re good wrestlers and in jiu-jitsu,” said Kingad.

“The game plan is to strike and to defend the ground well. I’ll try to keep the fight standing, there’s little changes I made in my gameplan.”

The only adjustment Kingad will be having now is in the stance of his opponents.

Initially preparing for a southpaw, the Team Lakay standout will have to get accustomed to seeing orthodox stances once again as McLaren comes in favoring his right hand.

“I’ve seen him compete many times, and I know he’s a terrific athlete. I don’t think I’ll have a hard time adjusting cause he’s pretty similar to Kairat,” said Kingad.

“If there’s an adjustment I have to make, it’s their stance. Kairat is southpaw while McLaren is orthodox.”

Kingad also feels like he’s the stronger of the two since McLaren moved to flyweight after being a staple in the bantamweight division.

Come 2 August, “The King” believes he will have all the advantages – and he plans to use them in order to advance to the finals of the prestigious tournament.

“He was strong in bantamweight but I feel like when he moved to flyweight, I have the upper hand now,” Kingad stressed.

“That’s my advantage over him. In case the match goes to the ground, I have something to show for, something he won’t expect.”