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COCONUT CREEK, Fla. — Kyoji Horiguchi laughs when he recounts the story. It was 2019, and after his coaches and teammates at American Top Team (ATT) urged him to put down roots in the area, he finally bought a house in South Florida.
Horiguchi, the current Rizin bantamweight champion and former Bellator bantamweight champ, had been training at ATT for nearly five years before making the purchase. During that period, when Horiguchi wasn’t in his home country of Japan, he was at the gym — either training or sleeping.
The former UFC flyweight title challenger was the only long-term resident of ATT’s dormitory, which is upstairs from the first-floor mats, cages and workout equipment. And even after he bought his new home 10 minutes away from the facility, there was comfort and familiarity in the dorms. Horiguchi still packed up his gear and went upstairs to that same tiny single room. He didn’t sleep in his new home for months.
“I like training,” Horiguchi said with a chuckle. “So, it’s easier to get there. That’s why.”
The tale has been repeated inside the walls of American Top Team ad nauseum since then. The executive team of owner Dan Lambert, general manager Richie Guerriero and head coach Conan Silveira even decided to name the dorm “Horiguchi Hall” after its most tenured resident.
The superlatives thrown around about Horiguchi at ATT are enough to make the most bombastic politician blush. Some say he’s the best fighter on the team, which also happens to boast the greatest woman fighter of all time in Amanda Nunes, and Dustin Poirier, who is coming off back-to-back finishes of Conor McGregor. Others refer to Horiguchi as the most unheralded fighter on Earth, potentially the best in the world in two divisions.
On Friday, Horiguchi gets a chance to substantiate all those lofty plaudits when he challenges Sergio Pettis for the Bellator bantamweight title in the main event of Bellator 272 at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut (Showtime, 10 p.m. ET;…
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Source : espn
