MMA: Aiman feeling no pressure ahead of Manila contest

Coming off a defeat and making his first appearance of the year, however, has not stirred up the slightest worry in the Negeri Sembilan native’s mental game.

Instead, Aiman is only game to win – regardless of how it comes to him inside the Mall of Asia Arena on Friday, 2 August.

“There’s no pressure going into this match,” the Bali MMA athlete said ahead of his bantamweight showdown. “I’m not worried because I try not to think about these situations.”

He added: “I just have eyes on the win. It could be a knockout or a submission - just, hopefully, not a decision.”

There is also added motivation for the Malaysian warrior to score a win in what is set to be the Philippines’ greatest ever martial arts spectacle.

In April 2017, Aiman was handed his first promotion loss by the hands of Filipino warrior Danny “The King” Kingad in the same precinct.

The bout could have gone either way, but the latter had the edge on the judges’ scorecard. When Aiman looked back at that defeat, he did not have the slightest remorse as he managed to push the hometown hero until the end of the third round.

Kingad was riding on two back-to-back first-round finishes, but the former MIMMA Champion’s grit frustrated him.

“I watched the video a lot after my fight and realized where I lost. Decision wins or losses are always tricky,” the 24-year-old said.

“I just spent a couple of days rest before I continued training. Like I’ve mentioned before, I’ve been improving techniques which I never had before.

“I believe I’ll leave Manila with the win this time around.”

Aiman’s bout in the prelims of ONE: DAWN OF HEROES will go live on the ONE Super App and the ONE Championship YouTube channel at 5 pm on Friday, 2 August.