‘Similar To My Own Life And What I’m Going Through’ – How Musashi’s ‘Vagabond’ Reshaped Yuya Wakamatsu’s Meaning Of Strength

If Yuya “Little Piranha” Wakamatsu ever wrote his own book, it wouldn’t be about fighting. It wouldn’t chronicle the knockouts, the ONE World Title bouts, or the nights he stood atop the canvas as divisional king. It would be about something quieter and far more difficult – the relentless, lifelong campaign against the enemy you can never outrun: yourself.

It sounds simple. For Wakamatsu, it has been anything but. Before the ONE Flyweight MMA World Champion makes his second title defense against dangerous Uzbek finisher Avazbek Kholmirzaev at ONE SAMURAI 1 , live from the Ariake Arena in Tokyo, Japan, on Wednesday, April 29, Wakamatsu remembers the legendary manga that changed the trajectory of his life and career.

View this post on Instagram A Chiropractor’s Office, A Chance Encounter The story begins, as the best ones often do, with an accident. Around the time his first son was born, Wakamatsu found himself at a chiropractor’s office with time to kill. On the shelf sat a volume of Vagabond , Takehiko Inoue’s epic story that follows the wandering swordsman Miyamoto Musashi on his obsessive quest to become the greatest warrior in Japan.

Wakamatsu said: “I knew about Vagabond from when I was young, but as a kid, I had no interest in reading it. Then, about six or seven years ago, I started reading it and just kept going from there. ” View this post on Instagram Wakamatsu never really stopped.