Ham Seo-hee does not have a lot of confidence Itsuki Hirata. The two atomweight MMA contenders are set to meet at ONE Championship Fight Night 8 this Saturday morning in Singapore, but Ham, 36, is concerned that the fight may fall through at the last minute. “I’m still not really sure if we’ll be able to fight on Saturday,” the South Korean MMA veteran told to Post in Singapore this week. Ham’s concerns are justified. She and Hirata were originally set to fight at ONE 163 last November in Singapore, but her Japanese rival failed to pass a pre-fight hydration test, and therefore missed weight as a result. Ham, who did make weight, then declined to accept a short-notice catchweight contest, and the fight fell through. She admits she was initially “very disappointed,” but quickly put the drama behind her. “I understood there was nothing that could be done at that moment,” she said. “I told myself ‘there’s always next time’ and I moved on.” Hirata, for her part, knows she made some mistakes back in November. “It was very stressful for me,” the 23-year-old told the Post. “I trained for a long time but I couldn’t fight. I lost to myself.” Ham did not hide her frustration with Hirata when their first booking fell through. However the South Korean ultimately agreed to accept a rescheduled fight with her rival – with the caveat that the young Japanese fighter passes her pre-fight checks this time around. “I was open and ready to fight other fighters, but I did want to fight Itsuki Hirata because we were supposed to fight, and as long as she got her weight and hydration issues resolved I was willing to fight,” she said. “That’s why I said yes.” “I really believe she will be able to make the weight. If she’s unable to, that’s unacceptable.” Hirata seems to recognise that she has been given a second chance, and after hiring a nutritionist , is “confident” she will make it to the Circle this Saturday. “I have the same opponent so I didn’t change the details of my training so much, but I changed my dieting programme and what I eat,” she said of her preparation. ONE: Hirata working with nutritionist, confident weight issues in past The winner of Saturday’s Ham vs Hirata bout could be next in line for an atomweight title shot. The title is currently held by Canadian-American Angela Lee, but the champion lost her 18-year-old sister Victoria – also a ONE fighter – late last year, and it is unclear when or even if she will return to competition after that tragedy. Ham and Hirata both have their eyes on the title, and are prepared to fight Lee, or somebody else for an interim title if the champion is unavailable. “I want to win and I want to get the title shot,” Hirata said. “If I win this fight, I will strongly appeal for a shot at the title,” Ham agreed. “If I can fight for the title, [any opponent is] fine.” Ham (25-8) is significantly more experienced than Hirata (6-1), and is widely considered the favourite in Saturday’s match-up in Singapore. She seems to be full of confidence after a successful training camp in South Korea. “I’m in good condition,” she said. “I feel really good. Actually I feel a lot better than I did the first time.” Hirata, who did some of her training for the fight in the United States, is also ready to show her skills this weekend. “Everybody says Ham Seo-hee is strong,” she said. “I’m not the favourite for this fight, but I want to show whatever I can.” “I will bring a great fight.”