[Photo](C) MMAPLANET
Itsuki Hirata is a treasure in the Japanese MMA world. Not only does he win the fighting proxy war and his professional debut goes on the Cinderella story of overseas = ONE, but there is no doubt that his presence is already special.
Next to Hirata, I could always see my brother Naoki. Following his sister, he started his career as a professional MMA fighter, and the position he stands in and the sight he sees are clearly different from his sister. And I pay attention to the surroundings as Itsuki Hirata’s older brother.
He also started his career in a special environment in a different way than his sister. And in the cage, he has already shown what may be special.
We asked Naoki Hirata to look back on his professional debut year and ask how he will fight this year.
──I have had the opportunity to meet with you both domestically and internationally as Itsuki Hirata’s older brother, but today I will be interviewing you for the first time as an MMA fighter.
“thanks a lot. I look forward to working with you”
──I would like to ask you straightforwardly, but do you feel that Itsuki Hirata is in conflict with your position as an older brother while standing in the same field of MMA?
“Before I made my professional debut, I always supported what I could do for the tree. I still support the tree. At the same time, I am MMA. In addition to the feeling of cheering, the feeling of not being defeated has also sprung up.
I have both the feeling of wanting to support and support and the feeling of having to give a name … “
──Itsuki Hirata, an MMA fighter, is a player who goes through an unprecedented process. On the other hand, Naoki chose MMA after graduating from college. Have you ever been influenced by her?
“I’ve been doing judo for a long time, but I loved martial arts and wanted to try it. When I was in my fourth year of college, I was job hunting, but there are many people who become MMA fighters from judo players. I had no experience of hitting, but I liked sleeping and wanted to try how much I could do.
Ki started going to the gym first, and I continued to practice judo while practicing MMA a little. It is not uncommon for people around me to get a job and become a civil servant, and I also have to take an exam for it, so while I have time to study again, a tree has emerged in the martial arts proxy war ── in martial arts I felt like I was eating. “
──Currently, Ki is ahead of the game as a professional. Naoki began his career in a hierarchy of men’s MMA, which is different from women’s. There is an endlessly long staircase that is not special in the presence of a special existence.
“The tree is a tree, and I’m not rushing myself, and I’m thinking of growing steadily. Even if I’m regarded as the older brother of Itsuki Hirata, I’m told that I will eventually be as good as the tree. I am practicing with my feelings on a regular basis. As a player, I think it is important for each other to work hard and have a good influence on each other. “
──By the way, Naoki continues to practice at K-Clann, where he is away.
“I am practicing with DEEP champion Ushiku (Ayataro) and a strong player who has come to practice, and Mr. Yokota is also from judo and understands what he is good at and what he is not good at. It’s a practice environment that suits me, and I have no reason to leave now. I’m an adult and I decide where to practice. “
──Are you living alone now?
“No, I’m at my parents’ house. K-Clan is close in distance, and I’m already an adult, so I’ll decide for myself.
Also, if I’m called by a tree, I’ll do Rantre together like today, exchange opinions with each other on research on ground fighting, and practice at the gym. I also need time to practice with the trees. “
──Isn’t she burning your rice cake as if you’re too close to your sister (laughs)?
“I don’t have a girlfriend right now (bitter smile) … I would like to meet someone who understands that.”
──I see (laughs). By the way, the opponent of the professional debut match was Yutaka Hoshino, the new King of Shooto in 2017. I have won one from that player. While attracting attention because of his position as Itsuki Hirata’s older brother, I also feel that the evaluation of performance in the cage is not justified.
“The fact that Hoshino was in his debut match means that he is expected to do so, and he fought to live up to that expectation. Ki continues to win, and he cannot lose in terms of his record. Originally I was thinking about the professional debut match around August, but I was injured in the Future King tournament and it wasn’t perfect yet so I was allowed to fight in November. Of course I was scared. I fought with my stomach. “
──Did you ever think, “Why are you the new king of Shooto?”
“If you do it anyway, it’s better to be able to fight with players who have a track record and a name in the category where you can play. The opponent in December was also a person who has a name and won the Asakura Mirai Challenge in a row, so those people I’m thinking of fighting with
──How satisfied were you in 2020, your first year as a professional?
“I was injured and I got about 60 points. In 2021, I really wanted to fight another match in order to play against a higher-ranking person. There is a part that I was a little late, so it’s still 60 points. “
──After graduating from university, the conversion is not early in terms of age, and there are Shinryu who became the champion in DEEP and is fighting in RIZIN even younger, and Hiroba Minowa who chose ONE from the world champions of Shooto.
“I’m not conscious of that. I’m always myself. I don’t want to be influenced by others and go on my way, I don’t want to be impatient in a good way, I want to do it at my own pace. is”
──Where do you set your goals as an MMA fighter?
“My current goal is to become a DEEP featherweight champion. I don’t know if Ayataro is the champion and will go to the next stage, but I want to become the champion following Ayataro and go abroad. “
──Is that also influenced by the fact that Ki is fighting in ONE?
“No, overseas … I think the UFC is at the top, so my goal is UFC. I started MMA with that in mind. UFC isn’t entertainment, it’s a stage where you really fight. Because there is a place. I want to aim there. “
.
