Keito “Pocket Monk” Yamakita

Japanese mixed martial arts star Keito Yamakita was born in the coastal prefecture of Mie in the city of Inabe. There, he developed a love for wrestling. “Pocket Monk” soon started competing in Pancrase, where he went on to become the organization’s strawweight champion.

On February 22, 2021, however, he hit a career high when he competed in Road to ONE: Young Guns in Japan. On that night, he beat his opponent by second-round knockout via knee. He then joined ONE Championship the following year with an unblemished 7-0 record in MMA.

Yamakita is now aiming to use his freestyle wrestling and newfound Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu skills to propel him to the top of ONE’s loaded strawweight mixed martial arts division.

“Pocket Monk” may have a wealth of accolades behind him, but he’s determined to keep going until he’s known around the globe as the ONE Strawweight MMA World Champion.