Physical: Asia's Yushin Okami addresses the misunderstanding over reposted fan made post

Days after Netflix’s popular reality show, Physical: Asia, ended, a biased allegation made by a contestant started circulating. 

The contestant in question was Team Japan’s captain, former MMA fighter Yushin Okami. 

After the finale, Okami was seen reposting many fan posts that lauded Team Japan’s performance during the show. 

But one such reposted post caught the attention of the netizens. 

The reposted fan picture called Team Japan the best, but also criticized the show, calling it biased. 

However, Okami has presented his side of the story with another Instagram story where he called the incident a misunderstanding. 

The Netflix fitness show premiered on October 28, 2025 where athletes from eight countries competed in a series of quests.

Physical: Asia’s Yushin Okami apologized for “any misunderstanding” in his Instagram story 

As reported by Chosun Daily on November 20, 2025, Yushin Okami reposted a fan post on November 18, 2025, which said:

“Japan was the best team. We could tell from the beginning that this show was biased. There were so many shortcomings but above all, such a show should be produced by a country that is not a participating nation. Regardless, I am truly proud of the Japanese team.” 

The post ignited controversy over alleged biased results amongst netizens. 

As reported by International Business Times on November 19, 2025, netizens suspected that the show was rigged due to its production and filming in South Korea. 

For those unversed, Team Korea won the competition during the finals on November 18, 2025. 

Okami, however, soon deleted the post and shared an apology on his Instagram stories, addressing the “misunderstanding." He stated:

“I want to clarify something I reposted earlier—I didn’t fully understand the English meaning behind it, and it may have caused confusion.”

He then went on to praise the show and called it his “honor” to compete with all the “incredible athletes”. 

Yushin continued:

“ Physical: Asia was an amazing competition and an honor to compete with so many incredible athletes. I’m very proud of Team Japan.”

He concluded his post by stating: 

“I sincerely apologize if my post caused any misunderstanding to fans around the world. Thank you always for your support.”

In the competition, Team Japan earned the audience's praise for their performance. 

The team consisted of six athletes, including Olympian Katsumi Nakamura, MMA fighter Kana Watanabe, wrestler Nonoka Ozaki, who is also an Olympic medalist, baseball player Yoshio Itoi, and their captain, MMA wrestler Yushin Okami. 

Yushin Okami boasts of 23 years of professional experience and holds the record for securing the most UFC wins by any Asian fighter. 

Interestingly, he surpassed Kim Dong-hyun’s record, who was also competing in the show as captain of Team Korea.

During the final, Team Mongolia and Team Korea faced off in the ultimate showdown. 

Team Japan lost the competition during the fifth challenge by scoring the lowest score. 

Team Korea dominated the challenge during the finals and won Physical: Asia. 

Stay tuned for more such updates.