Yuki Yoza has built one of the most compelling runs in ONE Championship’s bantamweight kickboxing division — and he has done it without hand wraps.
The former K-1 Champion challenges Jonathan “The General” Haggerty for the ONE Bantamweight Kickboxing World Title at ONE Samurai 1 on Wednesday, April 29, at Ariake Arena in Tokyo, Japan.
The no-wraps detail first caught global attention during his promotional debut at ONE Friday Fights 109 in May 2025, when he removed his gloves after beating the previously unbeaten Elbrus Osmanov and revealed bare wrists. Since then, three wins inside ONE, including a masterclass over ONE Flyweight Kickboxing World Champion Superlek, have extended his winning streak to 13 and turned the quirk into a defining part of his identity.
The decision was not a stunt. It grew directly from what Yoza discovered about his own body during training. Wraps in the gym felt fine. Wraps in fights felt restricting, costing him the wrist mobility that underpins his entire striking mechanics.
“I think I stopped using hand wraps in fights around my last four fights in K-1. Originally, I didn’t use wraps in training anyway. Without them, I could use my wrist much more freely,” Yoza said.
“So on a whim, I asked for permission to try fighting without them. And it felt incredibly natural. Since then, I’ve believed it’s better not to use them. So I don’t wrap my hands anymore.”
Yoza’s Kyokushin background is why the wraps were never needed
The technical case for going bare runs deeper than comfort. When Yoza throws a body shot or a hook in training, his wrist rotates freely and the knuckles land clean. Wrapped, the joint locks and the point of impact shifts. For most fighters that margin is manageable. For Yoza it was the difference between hitting the way he intended and not.
His Kyokushin karate roots where fighters compete bare-knuckle conditioned his hands from the start. Fights without wraps have consistently left him uninjured. The methodology, unusual by any standard, is simply the product of a fighter who knows his own body precisely.
“For example, when I throw a body shot, in training this part of my wrist moves freely, so I can turn it over and land the punch cleanly with the knuckles. But when it’s wrapped all the way here – for me at least – the wrist gets locked,” he said.
“But when I tried fighting without wraps, my wrist could turn properly again. And I’ve even scored knockdowns in fights without them. For me, this wrist movement is the key point. So the advantages definitely outweigh the disadvantages.
“Whether you wrap your hands or not, you should just go with whatever feels best for you.”