Chatri Sityodtong believes ONE athletes stack up against any in the world: ‘We have the world’s greatest roster’
The ONE chairman and CEO believes the promotion’s multi-discipline approach has given them an edge in terms of talent in the cage.
ONE Championship Chairman and CEO Chatri Sityodtong is backing the Singapore-based promotion’s roster to compete with any other martial arts organization.
The topic of cross-promotional events arose during the ONE founder’s appearance on BJPenn.com’s “Just Scrap Radio” podcast, and Sityodtong revealed that he would be open to a joint venture with the UFC.
“Our strong preference, as it has been for the last 11-plus years since we founded the company, is to grow organically. I truly believe we have the world’s greatest roster. I would do a co-promotion with the UFC in a heartbeat, champion vs. champion,” he said.
“You know, it’s no secret that the global combat sports industry is now a global duopoly. I think a year or so ago, Neilson came out with the top 20 global sports properties on the planet, and only UFC and ONE are in the top 10. I think ONE was ranked No. 4 in terms of the size of viewership numbers, and the UFC was No. 8 or something like that. So, we are the two 800-pound gorillas, in terms of fandom, viewership, and engagement.”
ONE made its historic debut in the United States this past May with ONE Fight Night 10 – a blockbuster event headlined by American MMA legend Demetrious Johnson‘s defending his ONE flyweight world title in a trilogy bout with longtime rival Adriano Moraes.
The Denver show sold out weeks in advance, and viewership numbers far exceeded even the promotion’s expectations.
While ONE’s expansion plans could be seen as an invasion of the Western combat sports market dominated by the UFC, Sityodtong believes that the two martial arts giants can co-exist.
“We both have the deepest rosters. We’re slightly different, actually very different from each other in our approach with our brand and our ethos – but also the roster. You know, UFC is very focused solely on MMA – it’s the world’s largest MMA organization,” he said.
“ONE is focused on a whole platform of multi-disciplines, so we’re the world’s largest martial arts organization. You know, the world has 8 billion people. It’s a big, big place, and there’s definitely room for two mega giants in the combat sports industry. It’s a very good place, and a healthy place for athletes for pay, for fame, for fandom, (and) for outside competition opportunities.”