Kana “Krusher Queen” Morimoto punches people in the face for a living. The rest of the time, she drives exactly the way she fights: fast, fearless, and behind 455 horsepower of pure American muscle.
The former four-time K-1 Champion returns to action in a high-stakes atomweight kickboxing matchup against Vero “The Kayan Leopard” at The Inner Circle. The blockbuster event broadcasts live this Friday, May 22, inside Bangkok’s legendary Lumpinee Stadium, available exclusively to subscribers on live.onefc.com.
Before the 33-year-old striking veteran roars back onto the global stage with her stellar 24-6 record in tow, there is one more corner of her adrenaline-fueled life that deserves a proper introduction.
It is bright red, packs a massive 6.2-liter V8 under the hood, and proudly carries the Chevrolet Camaro LT1 RS nameplate. Devastating knockouts and high-octane horsepower — Kana simply cannot resist either.
She told onefc.com:
“I love cars. I love driving. I go on a lot of drives. Currently, I drive a Camaro. I’d love to add more to the collection.”
Underneath the hood sits a ferocious 6.2-liter engine pushing out 455 horsepower and 455 pound-feet of torque, paired with the kind of zero-to-sixty acceleration figure that closes in on four seconds flat.
The car is certainly not a machine built for a casual stroll down city streets. When Kana hits the throttle, the roaring V8 does all the talking. The tire-smoking burnouts quickly follow, too.
This deep-rooted love affair started long before she ever joined ONE Championship, thousands of miles away from her hometown of Matsusaka, in a place where the sun, the surf, and the loud cars all collide into a single, unforgettable childhood memory.
She recalled:
“In middle school, I went to Hawaii [for a holiday], and it was love at first sight. The first one I ever saw was a bright red Mustang. That’s when I fell in love with American cars.”
The striking image of that Mustang never faded. Years later, when the time finally came to purchase a premium ride of her own, she found herself drawn to its closest stablemate — the Chevrolet Camaro, immortalized in the Transformers franchise and deeply synonymous with American performance car culture across multiple generations.
However, finding one in Japan proved to be exceptionally tricky, considering the country boasts its own iconic JDM (Japanese Domestic Market) heritage filled with legendary Nissan Skylines, Mitsubishi Evolutions, Toyota Supras, and Mazda RX-7s.
Determined to land one anyway, Kana eventually tracked down her very first piece of American muscle.
She explained:
“I bought the Camaro right after I debuted with ONE. With gas cars becoming less common, there aren’t many places that carry them anymore.”
Kana’s Need For Speed
Kana Morimoto drives the Camaro the exact same way she fights: aggressively, confidently, and with very little patience for anyone trying to slow her down.
Open highways transform into private playgrounds the moment she fires up the engine. That high-speed enthusiasm, however, has occasionally bumped up against the posted speed limit.
She admitted:
“I absolutely speed. I’ve been caught for speeding on the highway.”
Her muscle car obsession, however, runs much deeper than the bright red Camaro and the open highway. It sits inside a much larger pattern that has shaped Kana for as long as she can remember — fast cars, hard-hitting fights, and a profound love for everything American.
That passion has worked its way into nearly every corner of her life, and she shows absolutely no signs of slowing down.
The Team Aftermath athlete concluded:
“I really do love thrilling things. [I’ve been to America] about ten times altogether. I love American culture. Besides, the people are nice. Everyone is friendly. I feel like it suits me.”