Cui: Now it’s ONE vs. UFC
ONE founder Victor Cui: “Now, it’s the battle of ONE versus UFC, the emergence of two global superpowers in the world of MMA.”
ONE founder Victor Cui recently did an extended interview with Michael Bacos for B/R. Cui estimates he has 90% of the Asian MMA market share, and explains why.
“Like every business industry you see a natural duopoly emerge—Samsung versus Apple, Twitter versus Sina Weibo. I saw this natural duopoly, where a Western concept gets taken into Asia, brought by an Asian businessman, adapted for Asian tastes and becomes, in some cases, a bigger business than the original. Now, it’s the battle of ONE versus UFC, the emergence of two global superpowers in the world of MMA. ONE Championship is the largest sports media property in history to be based in Asia, and we are changing the way the world views sports content.”
“Right now, our focus is to grow the potential multi-billion dollar market in Asia. Asia is home to more than half of the global population, and market penetration in Asia alone will be able to make us the largest sports media property in the world.”
“The ruleset is another reflection of the philosophy of ONE. It’s a blend of the very best from the West, and the very best from the East. We didn’t simply take Western rules and drop it into Asia and say, ‘OK here, take this.’ The global ruleset was adopted from the best elements of each era and region. It makes fights faster paced and more exciting, where mixed martial artists aren’t allowed to hide behind rules. This really captures back what the essence of mixed martial arts is all about, which is putting together the best martial artists against each other.”
“Major sports organizations like NFL, MLB, NHL and many more have struggled to bring their sport to Asia. Asian fans are very selective with what they enjoy and taking what works in the West and directly importing it to Asia will not lead to long-term success. ONE Championship is based in Asia, features Asian heroes, and we know what appeals to each individual market. We combine that unique spin on world-class entertainment that is similar to the excitement and extravagance of a rock concert. That’s what helped us to fill 20,000 seat arenas across the continent and spur the exponential growth across Asia.”
ONE returns to the Philippines on April 24 for ONE 26: Valor of Champions. ONE welterweight champion Ben Askren fights Luis Santos in the main event. The event can be watched via livestream for just $9.99.