Japanese UFC veteran Yoshihiro Akiyama returned to action for the first time in four-and-a-half years in the middleweight co-main event of ONE Championship: Legendary Quest on Saturday in Shanghai, China, suffering a decision loss to a man 20 years his junior, Agilan Thani.
“Sexyama” showcased his stellar judo ability early on, throwing Thani to the canvas with ease 20 seconds into the contest. Thani came back into the fight, landing several hard shots after conceding the throw and even managed to take the judo legend to the ground himself. Just before the final minute of the first, Akiyama suffered a low blow, taking close to the full allotted injury time before rejoining the fray.