Chatri Sityodtong not surprised ONE Championship has taken off

Chatri Sityodtong

ONE Championship’s success has a lot to do with the people behind it but equally or even more responsible is the massive Asian fanbase that it has managed to capture. From Singapore to the Philippines to Thailand to Myanmar and all across Asia, the promotion has become a highly anticipated attraction.

Dubbed the Home of Martial Arts, ONE Championship has done a masterful job of promoting the beauty and essence of martial arts in its purest form. It has put Asia’s greatest cultural treasure front and center.

“Am I surprised that ONE Championship has taken off? No, because Asia is the home of martial arts, and we are showcasing the true beauty of martial arts,” ONE Championship chairman and CEO stated. “We’re not showcasing fighting and violence, yes, it’s an element of the game, competition is an element of the game, but we’re showcasing their life stories, their values.”

These values are present in each and every ONE Championship athlete on the roster. Stemming from what was already a strong mixed martial arts-based product, the organization began to showcase more traditional and regional martial arts, such as Myanmar’s Lethwei, Thailand’s Muay Thai and Indonesia’s Pencak Silat.

ONE Championship also showcased one of the most important pillars of MMA in submission grappling and with dream matches between some of the world’s top Brazilian Jiu Jitsu practitioners. The promotion has gone all in as it promoted striking-based martial arts.

In early 2018, ONE Championship introduced the ONE Super Series, which featured kickboxing and Muay Thai world champions from all over the world. Among them are Giorgio Petrosyan, Nong-O Gaiyanghadao, Sam-A Gaiyanghadao and Yodsanklai Fairtex, among others.

In April 2018 days before the launch of the ONE Super Series in Manila, Philippines, Sityodtong declared ONE Championship as the world’s largest martial arts organization. He explained, “If you think about the umbrella of martial arts and all the verticals of Muay Thai, Kickboxing, submission grappling, boxing, mixed martial arts, these are all the verticals, and I decided we really wanna do all and celebrate all of Asia’s greatest martial arts, full stop."

In addition, ONE Championship also introduced a five-rope ring for the first time. It was reminiscent of the stage that the uber-popular PRIDE FC used to employ back during their heyday in Japan, a throwback to one of Asia’s pioneer MMA promotions.

“ONE Championship being the home of martial arts, Asia being the home of martial arts, it’s a way for us to celebrate across the entire continent,” Sityodtong noted. “We want to showcase Lethwei, which we have, showcase Silat, Muay Thai, Kickboxing, Wushu, Sanda, Kung Fu, all the beautiful arts of Asia, this is what I want to showcase."

Here is Sityodtong in a press conference in Manila:

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