ONE Championship

[GeneChing]

Nov 9, 2018, 12:10pm
Eddie Alvarez Is Leading An Influx Of American Martial Artists Into One Championship
Brian Mazique
Contributor

Eddie Alvarez's contract with the UFC ended this year, and after fielding offers from a variety of promotions, The Underground King chose to sign a lucrative contract with ONE Championship.


Eddie Alvarez signed with ONE Championship but is that the just the beginning of a slew of American MMA fighters heading to Singapore. (AP Photo/Jacqueline Larma)

Per Alvarez, whom I spoke to during an interview on The Fight Guys podcast, Alvarez talked about why he chose to sign with ONE over the other promotions that bid for his services. He identified the desire to win the only world title he hasn't won (he's a former Bellator and UFC champion). Alvarez also talked about how ONE seemed to fit his approach to martial arts. He referred to his previous stint fighting in Asia in the past.

"When I fought in Asia, I became very popular. I didn't have to conduct myself in any manner, or change my character or try to be someone just to get a title shot, or jump in line, or something like that," said Alvarez. "America is very much like that. It's like the squeaky wheel always gets the oil because a lot of American fans want to hear a story, a rivalry or a grudge. When I fought in Asia, back in 2007, the fans they truly loved fighting and martial arts. They believed in the integrity, the honor, and the respect. That's what they valued. They didn't value a story or a grudge or a lot of nonsense. I can be myself. I don't have to act out of character to sell something. I'm looking forward to being myself and not having to do things that I don't necessarily agree with in order to get ahead or get to a title shot."

You can listen to the entire interview with Alvarez below, as he spoke more in-depth about his decision to sign with ONE, his next possible opponents, goals and viewing himself as a business rather than just a fighter.

ONE Championship has a variety of stars like Angela Lee (Singapore), Bibiano Fernandes (Brazil) and Martin Nguyen (Australia), but Alvarez is the most prominent American free agent to sign with ONE in the promotion's history. When Ben Askren joined the promotion back in 2013, he was known because of his experience as an NCAA Division I wrestler, Olympian, and former Bellator champion, but he hadn't compiled a body of work in MMA like Alvarez.


UFC lightweight champion Eddie Alvarez speaks during a news conference for UFC 205, Tuesday, Sept. 27, 2016, in New York. Alvarez is scheduled to face featherweight champion Conor McGregor to defend his lightweight belt on Nov. 12 in what will be the first UFC card to be held in New York after the state legislature legalized the sport earlier this year. (AP Photo/Julie Jacobson)

Suddenly, after Alvarez signed with ONE, he has been followed by a slew of other acquisitions of American talent in and out of the cage. The well-publicized trade of Askren from ONE to the UFC for Demetrious Johnson was the first move. Then, on Wednesday, ONE announced it had hired former Strikeforce competitor, UFC champion and women's MMA pioneer Miesha Tate as Vice President.


Demetrious Johnson celebrates after defeating Henry Cejudo in a flyweight championship mixed martial arts bout at UFC 197, Saturday, April 23, 2016, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/John Locher)

What's next? There are rumors young and popular American Sage Northcutt could be the next former UFC fighter to sign on with ONE. If that comes to fruition, we'd be looking at four major acquisitions of American talent in a matter of weeks. I think it's safe to say there's a trend being established here. To add fuel to his fire, I spoke to ONE CEO Chatri Sityodtong in October, and he told me the promotion would have an American TV deal in place before the end of 2018.

There is no question, the UFC is still the king of the streets when it comes to MMA in the United States, but it's becoming more clear that ONE is no longer satisfied with just being the largest sports property in Asia–which is already a large market. By acquiring Alvarez, Johnson, Tate and possibly Northcutt, ONE is sending a welcome message to fighters from all backgrounds, as long as they fit the model.

If this time proves to be significant in the sport of MMA, Alvarez's signing could be seen as the launch point.

Pay the money and fighters will come.

[GeneChing]

Aug 20, 2018, 11:53am
ONE Championship And The UFC Represent Global Duopoly In Martial Arts
Brian Mazique
Contributor
Games

The Ultimate Fighting Championship is unquestionably the king of mixed martial arts in the western world, but ONE Championship is perhaps even more dominant in the east.


Chatri Sityodtong and Dana White CREDIT: PHOTO BY BRANDON MAGNUS/ZUFFA LLC/ZUFFA LLC VIA GETTY IMAGES AND ONE CHAMPIONSHIP

With their meteoric rise to prominence over the past seven years, ONE has seemingly pressed all the right buttons in establishing itself as a viable rival to its Western counterpart. In Asia, ONE is the largest martial arts organization. One of the promotion's missions has been to unite the continent's 4 billion people on the shoulders of the many country's connections to the various disciplines.

“In the same way that Starbucks offers many flavors of coffee and tea, we offer all martial arts,” said ONE Championship CEO Chatri Sityodtong.

“We have earned that reputation over the last couple of years, and so instead of mixed martial arts, as a fight fan and as a martial arts lover, you now get to see all forms of martial arts for the very first time in history. So you will see matches of, you know, Muay Thai versus Tae Kwon Do, or Tae Kwon Do versus Kung Fu, and the list goes on and on.”

According to Sityodtong, who was born in Thailand but is part Thai and Japanese, this makes ONE Championship the world’s largest martial arts organization.


YANGON, MYANMAR - JUNE 30: Aung La N Sang celebrates his historic title win, claiming the ONE Middleweight World Championship during ONE Championship Light Of A Nation at the Thuwunna Indoor Stadium on June 30, 2017 in Yangon, Myanmar. (Photo by Dux Carvajal/ONE Championship/Getty Images)

While the UFC has taken a more in-your-face approach in its rise to prominence, with president and face of the organization Dana White serving as the perfect microcosm for the American mixed martial arts community, Sityodtong has taken a different route.

“Every region in the world had a sport that represented it," said Sityodtong. "In Asia, there was nothing. I thought to myself, there had to be a way to highlight each of the martial arts that originated from the variety of Asian cultures, and ONE Championship was it. The term MMA has a negative connotation in Asia, in the sense that it’s all about bloodsport, profanity, people who throw stuff at press conferences. That works in America, but not in Asia."

Sityodtong has gone on record multiple times, including a direct one-on-one conversation with me, saying that he would not sign Conor McGregor if he were a free agent. Sityodtong feels strongly that McGregor's persona is a poor fit for the culture and identity he has crafted for ONE.


YANGON, MYANMAR - NOVEMBER 03: Aung La N Sang prepares to face Alain Ngalani in an Open Weight Super Bout during ONE Championship: Hero's Dream at the Thuwunna Indoor Stadium on November 03, 2017 in Yangon, Myanmar. (Photo by Dux Carvajal/ONE Championship/Getty Images)

“MMA is kind of an Americanized version of what martial arts is. Real, true, authentic martial arts has to do more with values and how it impacts the human soul. It’s about the way of the warrior, about integrity, humility, honor, respect, courage, discipline, and compassion. It’s about the true values of martial arts which is extremely significant here in Asia.”

The ONE Championship way appears to be a personal preference for Sityodtong, but it is also a calculated approach that originated from paying close attention to what resonates with Asian people. The proof is in the numbers, reach, regional reviews and the immeasurable responses from crowds at their events on hand to cheer on the fighters who have been given the platform to become icons in their countries.


SINGAPORE - MAY 26: Angela Lee celebrates her submission win against Istela Nunes at ONE Championship: Dynasty of Heroes at the Singapore Indoor Stadium on May 26, 2017, in Singapore (Photo by Dux Carvajal/ONE Championship/Getty Images)

Angela Lee of Singapore, Aung La N Sang of Myanmar and Eduard Folayang of the Philippines are to their countries what McGregor is to Ireland, and even bigger than Daniel Cormier, TJ Dillashaw and Rose Namajunas in the United States.

“We’re absolutely packing stadiums. We are filling thousand-seater arenas with passionate martial arts fans. We have the support of local governments, most importantly, the support of our fans. We have the most fantastic sponsors and partners on board that believe in what we’re doing, that believe in our vision,” Sityodtong concluded.

ONE Championship has been able to launch and reignite careers by focusing on the personal stories of the fighters. Spotlighting their backgrounds, personal and professional struggles and their overall journey. Recently, ESPN ran a piece on former NBA MVP Derrick Rose's immense popularity in China.


GUANGZHOU, CHINA - AUGUST 21: (CHINA OUT) Derrick Rose, Chicago Bulls point guard, takes a selfie with fans on August 21, 2015, in Guangzhou, Guangdong Province of China. (Photo by VCG/VCG via Getty Images)

While Rose was born and raised in Chicago and has never competed in Asia professionally, the people of China are drawn to his perseverance and desire to play, despite suffering the multitude of injuries that have slowed what looked to be a Hall-of-Fame career. In the United States, his country of origin, he has largely been reduced to the subject of memes and unfortunate gifs.

It is this contrast in the view of professional athletes that Sityodtong and ONE Championship have honed in on. They worked used these values to rebuild the careers of fighters like Aung La and heavyweight champion Brandon Vera.

With business flourishing, ONE Championship has ramped up its lineup of live events. The promotion is scheduled to produce 24 live shows in 2018 and 36 in 2019. The UFC is scheduled to deliver 47 live events in 2018, but some may argue that less is more when it comes to combat sports events.

The fewer shows, the more each one feels like an event. Though that's purely a matter of fan or media preference.

ONE may not be emulating its global competition, but it is definitely aware of its presence. By establishing new divisions of its property like the ONE Super Series (kickboxing) and Rich Franklin's ONE Warrior Series, it has produced layers that can compete, or perhaps surpass Glory Kickboxing, Bellator Kickboxing and the UFC's Ultimate Fighter and Tuesday Night Contender Series.

ONE signed Giorgio Petrosyan and Yodcherry Sityodtong to bolster its kickboxing venture while ONE Warrior is designed to focus on the rising martial arts talent in Asia. It is in its second season and airs on affiliate networks and the ONE Championship official YouTube channel.

Franklin is a former UFC middleweight champion turned ONE Championship ambassador and Vice President who hosts the show along with Jonathan Fong. The duo travels across Asia searching for talent and experiencing local cultures.

The athletes compete in professional bouts with the chance of earning a contract that can exceed $100,000 US currency. It's like a mixture of traditional reality television, White's Lookin for a Fight, Tuesday Night Contender, Ultimate Fighter and the American singing competition, The Voice. Franklin does a lot of teaching and coaching of the prospects, which is part of his background. In the role, he's more than a talent scout. It's almost partly like a mentorship and it's a pretty unique presentation overall.

The UFC holds a firm grip on the attention of Western MMA fans, and the organization is prospering, but ONE is holding down its region of the globe equally. Fans can only wonder and/or hope that one day we might actually see a cross-promoted event between the two organization's top champions.

That's a fantasy, but fans of both brands can dream.

THREADS
ONE Championship
UFC gets Bigger !!

[GeneChing]

Aside from me, of course...

Meet the Mixed Martial Arts Champion Who Became an Asian Movie Star
7:31 PM PDT 4/11/2019 by Mathew Scott


Courtesy of One Championship
Brandon Vera

One Championship heavyweight title-holder Brandon Vera looks set for a post-fight career in films after making an eye-catching debut in Erik Matti's actioner 'BuyBust.'

Former Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) star Brandon “The Truth” Vera raised eyebrows when he made the move to Asia in 2014 for a fledgling fight promotion and an uncertain future. Five years later, the Filipino-American fighter had become a world champion and, rather more unexpectedly, a movie star.

Today, the 41-year-old from Norfolk, Virginia, is mixing his fight life as the current heavyweight champion of Singapore-based One Championship with an emerging career as an action star, after grabbing attention on debut in last year’s Erik Matti-helmed and well-received Filipino actioner BuyBust.

With a slew of film projects coming up, The Hollywood Reporter caught up with Vera on the sidelines of One: Roots of Honour fight card in Manila, to talk about walking in the footsteps of his heroes.

How was the experience of trading the mixed martial arts cage for the BuyBust red carpet?

It was weird. It’s a different animal, a whole different monster. I thought it would be the same but it’s not. You have to try to be cute and be handsome. So it's totally different. It was really weird but awesome at the same time. I loved it.

Who were the film stars you grew up idolizing?

Obviously Bruce Lee. Chuck Norris. Everyone from the Saturday morning kung fu theatre I watched. Then [Arnold] Schwarzenegger, Sylvester Stallone, Clint Eastwood and even Tom Hanks. Bit of a broad range.


Erik Matti's Instagram
Vera on the BuyBust set with director Erik Matti.

How much of an influence was Bruce Lee considering you followed the same path — from martial arts to movies?

Come on. As a kid you looked up to two people — your dad and Bruce Lee. If your dad made you, it was only Bruce Lee. He made a major impact. He was small and we grew up in a racially charged era, real racism not just like today where someone just gets their feelings hurt. But that “little Chinaman” was always the one doing the biggest things. He was always reaching to do the impossible. So for sure, he had an impact on my career, not just as a martial artist but as a person.

Did you ever think you’d become an actor?

Never in a million years. I was looking for representation in the Philippines and wanted to look at pursuing an entertainment career outside the cage. I ended up with Virtual Playground, owned by Dondon Monteverde. They put a plan together, which I had to follow to a tee. I had to do all my [acting] classes, I had to read all my scripts. I fell in love with it.

Anne Curtis in 'BuyBust'
READ MORE
'BuyBust': Film Review
How was your first day on set with Erik Matti on BuyBust?

Man. The only comparison I can imagine is if you took somebody and you threw them into the fight circle on fight night and they had never even seen MMA before. “Go ahead, kid. Good luck”. I’d taken classes and preparing but once you’re in there? The first day was a blur.

There were some big stars involved — including Anne Curtis. Did you feel that when it came time to the stunts, that would be your chance to shine?

Oh, for sure. These are huge stars. But that was easy. I would do the rehearsals and say let’s do this one more time. It’s like a beautiful dance that you put together on set. It’s fun.

You were singled out in a lot of reviews for praise, too.

It felt like another world championship belt. It got to act with the biggest stars with the best records in the Philippines — and it turned out OK. I didn’t make a fool of myself, which is really, really cool.

So what do you have coming up?

We have three movies coming up. I have two scripts and am waiting for workshops. I can’t really talk about them at the moment, but I am super excited.

And you’ll still be fighting as you’ve challenged One’s light heavyweight champ Aung La N Sang?

Yeah, for sure. Actually, the training for these films is helping me keep my weight down and I have that fight coming up in October. So we have that hanging over us now as well. On the books we’re busy, off the books we’re even busier. It’s go, go, go and I’m drinking coffee all the time.

There was some debate in fight media when you made the move from the United States about whether it was the right one. How do you feel about it now?

One Championship’s last event [in Tokyo on March 31] smashed all sorts of records. The planets have aligned. Everything is just great and it’s lining up, one after another. Everybody thought I was crazy but look now. It’s like magic.

MATHEW SCOTT
THRnews@thr.com
@mathewscotthk

THREADS
ONE Championship
http://www.kungfumagazine.com/forum/showthread.php?70901-BuyBust"]BuyBust

[GeneChing]

May 8, 2019, 02:15am
ONE Championship Aims To Be 'The Most Fighter-Friendly Martial Arts Organization In The World'
Brian Mazique
Contributor


Mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter Demetrious Johnson of the United States speaks during ONE Championship A NEW ERA Press Conference in Tokyo Thursday, March 28, 2019. Alvarez and Johnson will make their One Championship debuts when the mixed martial arts promotion's first show takes place on Sunday at Ryogoku Kokugikan, Tokyo's famed home of sumo wrestling. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko) ASSOCIATED PRESS

ONE Championship CEO and Founder Chatri Sityodtong has never shied away from setting high goals for himself and the martial arts organization he's helped guide to prominence. What was once a little-known MMA promotion has grown into a formidable player in the global martial arts market.

Part of what has helped ONE become the kind of organization capable of luring talents like Demetrious Johnson, Eddie Alvarez, Sage Northcutt, and Vitor Belfort is the fighter-first concept that more athletes seem to be embracing. Almost to a man, the athletes mentioned above have said ONE made them an offer they couldn't refuse.

Long-time members of its roster like Brandon Vera have spoken at length about the way ONE's staff has treated him and other athletes. I've talked to newcomers like Northcutt who have had nothing but positive things to say about the environment he's currently working in with ONE. Newly hired vice president and former UFC women's bantamweight champion Miesha Tate has also gushed about her relationship with ONE, which is still in its infancy.

I spoke to Sityodtong last week about two of the organizations newest initiatives: the new ONE agent certification guidelines and ONE Studios. If Sitoydtong has his way, these two new programs will further establish ONE as "the global leader in martial arts leadership and thought innovation."

The ONE agent program is unlike anything we've ever seen in martial arts. ONE has created a structure that requires agents to meet the following criteria to represent any martial artist competing under the organization's banner:

Currently a resident in Asia for at least one (1) year
No prior criminal record
No history or current ongoing matters of legal or lawsuit activity with any athlete
A minimum of 10 years of related experience in the martial arts industry
Must possess a College or University Degree

"Agent certification was created to weed out the unethical managers who steal from athletes," said Sityodtong. "Just this year alone, we've had several athletes ask for our help with this problem. We could sit here and do nothing about it, or we could elevate the standard of excellence and create a better ecosystem for all parties involved."

Per Sityodtong, a current world champion on the organization's roster has been the victim of theft and mismanagement by an agent. Because the athlete was still in the midst of the legal process stemming from the incident, Sityodtong was unable to expound on the situation, but he believes it will be made public sometime later this year.


Mixed martial arts (MMA) fighters Demetrious Johnson, left, of the United States and Japan's Yuya Wakamatsu, right, face off during ONE Championship A NEW ERA Press Conference in Tokyo Thursday, March 28, 2019. Alvarez will make their One Championship debuts when the mixed martial arts promotion's first show takes place on Sunday at Ryogoku Kokugikan, Tokyo's famed home of sumo wrestling. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko) ASSOCIATED PRESS

"At ONE Championship, we are always upgrading and improving all of our systems and processes across the company to ensure a healthy ecosystem for all parties," Sityodtong said in the press release announcing the new agent program. "For as many decades as I can remember, agent and manager fraud has always been a big problem in Asia. ONE Championship aims to create a healthier, happier, and safer environment for our athletes both in and out of the arena."

Ideally, this new program would take yet another step toward establishing an environment that doesn't require an athlete to worry about the perils of doing business with a shady manager. If it's successful, beyond the obvious monetary advantages, the new agent program could reduce the athlete's stress level, thereby keeping them healthy for longer, and also allowing them to perform at a peak level without worrying about as many things outside of the ring or cage.

In addition to the new agent program, Sityodtong also discussed the new ONE Studios, which aims to produce movies and television shows starring the organization's athletes and well-known actors and actresses.

"We will produce movies and TV shows across all genres, action, romance and comedy with our biggest stars, along with the biggest stars from our region," said Sityodtong. "Ultimately, I want to make international blockbusters. It would be amazing if we had Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson with Brandon Vera, or perhaps Aung La N Sang in a movie. It would be amazing. We want to unleash the next Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson and Jackie Chan into the world of movies."


Mixed martial arts (MMA) fighters Xiong Jingnan of China, left, and Angela Lee of Singapore face off during ONE Championship A NEW ERA Press Conference in Tokyo Thursday, March 28, 2019. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko) ASSOCIATED PRESS

That might sound like crazy, out-of-the-box thinking, but if you become familiar with Sityodtong, you know he only knows one way to dream, and that's big. In many ways, that audacity is what has positioned ONE for the growth it has shown in the past two to five years. Per Sityodtong, ONE has had discussions with Netflix and Amazon about the distribution of their films and TV shows, but ultimately, it would like to produce content for 140 different countries out of its Singapore and Los Angeles offices.

"From our hydration policy to our cat scans, neurological exams to help prevent athletes from going into a match with a concussion, and other areas of focus on safety, we do this to help the athlete," Sityodtong said. "Now with ONE Studios as we think about marketing and the agent program, it helps to add multiple revenue streams for our athletes–during their careers and after they retire."

It's a fantastic concept. Based on the words of fighters currently on the roster, it seems as if ONE has been delivering an experience consistent with the motivation Sityodtong spoke about. If things continue to build in this way and the agent certification and ONE Studios add another layer to what seems like positive organization-athlete relations, ONE could add even more top-flight free agents to its roster in the future.

And no criminal record.

[GeneChing]

Coronavirus forces One Championship to put Singapore MMA show behind closed doors
‘King of the Jungle’ will still be broadcast live on February 28 but tickets for Singapore Indoor Stadium will be refunded
‘My team and I had the option to cancel the event altogether, but we chose not to,’ says CEO Chatri Sityodtong
Nick Atkin
Published: 10:54am, 18 Feb, 2020


Stamp Fairtex pummels Puja Tomar in Bangkok. She will headline the ‘King of the Jungle’ card in Singapore. Photos: One Championship

One Championship has decided to press ahead with its “King of the Jungle” card in Singapore on February 28, but the event will play out behind closed doors because of the outbreak of the deadly coronavirus.
Chatri Sityodtong, CEO of the Asian MMA promotion, said all tickets bought for show at the 12,000-capacity Singapore Indoor Stadium would be refunded, after deciding against cancelling it altogether. The event, headlined by Stamp Fairtex defending her atomweight kick-boxing title against Janet Todd, will still be broadcast live on television and digital platforms.
The Singapore government had already raised the DORSCON (Disease Outbreak Response System Condition) alert level to orange last week, with the Ministry of Health urging organisers to cancel or defer non-essential events.
“My team and I had the option to cancel the event altogether, but we chose not to cancel it,” Sityodtong said in a statement.


Demetrious Johnson will now get his One flyweight title shot in Jakarta, instead of Chongqing.

“Let us unite as a country and let us show strength as a continent to conquer this coronavirus,” he added. “We will get through these tough times together. Majulah Singapura! Jiayou China!”
There have been 77 reported cases of the coronavirus in Singapore, but no deaths. China’s health authorities on Tuesday reported 1,886 new coronavirus cases and 98 deaths on the mainland, taking the totals to 72,436 and 1,868 respectively, as of midnight on Monday.

The coronavirus has already seen One relocate its April 10 show from Chongqing in China to Jakarta, Indonesia.

One flyweight grand prix winner and former UFC champion Demetrious Johnson will aim to add more gold to his resume when he takes on flyweight champion Adriano Moraes, in the first of four bumper “One Infinity” cards in 2020.

The UFC has also been affected by the outbreak of the coronavirus in Asia. Strawweight champion Zhang Weili has twice had to move her training camp, first from Beijing to Thailand, and then to Abu Dhabi, ahead of her UFC 248 title defence on March 7 against Joanna Jedrzejczyk.



Nick Atkin

Nick is a production editor on the South China Morning Post’s sport desk, where he covers mixed martial arts (MMA). He was previously a sports writer and editor for ESPN.

THREADS
ONE Championship
COVID-19
Zhang Weili

[GeneChing]

...or is it Chatri Sityodtong trying to capitalize by coattailing on a viral vid?

You have to follow the link to TMZ to see the vids.

BULLIED BOY QUADEN BAYLES GETTING MMA LESSONS
... After Heartbreaking Video
2/21/2020 6:26 AM PT
BREAKING NEWS



A 9-year-old boy who said on a heartbreaking video that he wanted to kill himself after being bullied is getting a lift from the MMA world ... he's taken ONE Championship officials up on their offer for free training lessons.

Quaden Bayles -- an Australian with Achondroplasia dwarfism -- went viral this week after his mom posted a disturbing video of him breaking down in tears after being bullied.

In the footage, Bayles tells his mother, "I wish I could stab myself in the heart. I want someone to kill me."

Thousands of people -- including celebs all over the globe -- reached out to show their support for the boy ... with ONE CEO Chatri Sityodtong even offering free MMA lessons.

YOUR PAIN IS YOUR STRENGTH
@ONEChampionship

FYI -- ONE is one of the top MMA organizations in the world ... with stars like Demetrious Johnson and Eddie Alvarez fighting for the promotion.

Turns out, Bayles was super down for the training ... 'cause just hours after Sityodtong posted his message -- the ONE honcho says Bayles' family gladly accepted the offer!

"I just spoke to his amazing mom, Yarraka, over the phone," Sityodtong said Friday. "She has graciously accepted my invitation to come to Singapore for an all-expenses-paid vacation so Quaden can learn martial arts at EVOLVE."

"Our instructors will be sure to bully-proof Quaden. If he wakes up from his nap, we plan to FaceTime tonight. Yarraka said that he might sleep through the night. If so, we will FaceTime tomorrow. Let us all take the opportunity to show little Quaden how much the world cares."

Quaden is also set to make an all-expenses-paid trip to Disneyland in the coming months after a GoFundMe for the boy raised more than $230,000 in less than a day.

"Quaden’s feeling the love and now he needs a good rest," his mother said in a statement Thursday night. "We are meeting with the appropriate people in power to make changes and make a stand against bullying."

[GeneChing]

There's been a persistant campaign to debunk Bayles online. A claim that he's actually 18 and is scamming everyone with this has gone viral. It's so hard to tell what's real anymore, but the fack-checkers that debunk fake news like Snopes have debunked this claim. Of course, some now question the factuality of the fact-checkers, but when that happens, we are truly lost.

Regardless, Bayles may need his own indie thread here soon.

Bullied boy Quaden Bayles accepts an offer to train with one of the world's biggest mixed martial arts promotions in Singapore after being invited by the multi-millionaire owner
Quaden Bayles was invited to Singapore to learn martial arts with champion
Chatri Sityodtong invited Quaden and his family to an all expenses paid trip
On Saturday, he accepted the invitation and will learn martial arts skills
Quaden rose to fame after emotional video of him breaking down went viral
Fundraiser has generated more than $400,000 to send him to Disneyland
By SAHAR MOURAD FOR DAILY MAIL AUSTRALIA
PUBLISHED: 00:52 EST, 22 February 2020 | UPDATED: 00:52 EST, 22 February 2020

Quaden Bayles has been taken up an offer to travel to Singapore and train in mixed martial arts.

The nine-year-old boy appeared in an emotional video filmed by his mother Yarraka showing him breaking down in tears after he was subjected to bullying.

Since then, celebrities and sports stars including Hugh Jackman, broadcaster Piers Morgan and rugby league star Johnathan Thurston have shared messages of support.

Martial arts champion and ONE Championship founder Chatri Sityodtong offered to fly Quaden and his family on an all-expenses paid trip to Singapore.


Martial arts champion Chatri Sityodtong offered to fly Quaden and his family to an all-expenses paid trip to Singapore.

'I just want to let you know you have a friend out here in Asia and I know you're going through incredible suffering and pain. I can't imagine what you're going through,' Sityodtong said.

'But I want you to know that God gives the toughest battles to his bravest and strongest soldiers and for sure you're one of them.


Quaden's mother Yarraka accepted the invitation with Mr Sityodtong excited to train the youngster

'And I want you to know that your pain and suffering today is going to be your strength tomorrow.

'One day you're going to rise above and have the strength, compassion and empathy because everything you've gone through to help others. I really believe it.'

He then extended an offer to Quaden and his family to learn martial arts in his 'bully-proof' school.

'I would also like to extend to you and your family an all expenses paid trip to Singapore.

'I own a wonderful martial arts school called Evolve Mix Martial Arts. It has an incredible children's program that bully-proofs kids.

'If you have time this summer I'd love to invite you and your family as my personal guests to Singapore.'

He ended the video on a strong note asking parents and children to put a stop to bullying.

'To the parents and children out there, lets stop this bullying. Lets be kind to one another. The world needs it now more than ever.'

Quaden's mother accepted the invitation with Mr Sityodtong excited to train the youngster.

'He has graciously accepted my invitation to come to Singapore for an all-expenses-paid vacation so Quaden can learn martial arts at EVOLVE,' he tweeted.


Quaden (pictured) will join Mr Sityodtong where he will learn some martial arts skills

Yarraka shared the distressing video which sparked the outpouring of support after picking her son up from school on Wednesday.

The schoolboy, who has achondroplasia - the most common type of dwarfism - told his mother: 'Give me a rope, I want to kill myself.'

In the video, which has been viewed more than three million times, Quaden also said: 'I just want to stab myself in the heart... I want someone to kill me.'

Quaden also scratched at his neck and said: 'I want to die... I want to scratch myself.'

Now, he will also lead the Indigenous All-Stars out onto the field in their rugby league clash with the Maori All Stars in Queensland on Saturday.


Quaden Bayles' Instagram account 'Quadosss' warned his 226,000 followers that fake accounts were being created in a post on Saturday morning

A fundraiser started by comedian Brad Williams to send Quaden to Disneyland has raised more than $400,000.

While trolls to spread rumours, Quaden has received an outpouring of international support, including from Hugh Jackman and comedian Brad Williams.

Williams, who also has dwarfism, created a fundraiser for Quaden after hearing the upsetting news that he was bullied at school.

The fundraiser has now garnered $434,554 from more than 19,000 supporters since the American comedian started the GoFundMe page on Thursday.

[GeneChing]

ONE CHAMPIONSHIP'S JAMES YANG TRAINED FOR THREE YEARS IN SHAOLIN TEMPLE IN RURAL CHINA
SEP 13, 2021
In a matter of days, one of James Yang’s life dreams will come true as he makes his mixed martial arts debut.

The life of the 32-year-old has been full of adventures so far. The One Championship lightweight traveled around the globe to pursue fulfillment as a person and a martial artist. Now, he is scheduled to take on Roel Rosauro at the upcoming One “Revolution.” Before switching to MMA and training under Matt Hume at AMC Pankration, Yang had a life-changing experience in a Shaolin temple in rural China.

“When I was 17, out of high school, my plan was, you know, I was going to take six months off in Northern Shaolin martial arts academy,” he said. “It’s near a city called Siping in Dongbei, North-eastern China. It actually bordered North Korea, it’s very high there. The closest city, Siping, is about an hour away. That’s the closest city. It’s an hour away by taxi car. I was in rural, rural China. Even the nearest village was like six, seven kilometers away. We had nothing up there, it was living on this hill. At the academy, it wasn’t just shallow martial arts. They had Shaolin, but they had ba-ji[quan], Chen-style tai chi and Sanda, which is like Chinese kickboxing. They had a big mix of martial artists.”

The recollection of what happened while staying in China resembles some kung fu movies from the 80s, in which the young apprentice has to go through a series of challenging tasks to subdue his ego and grow his patience.

“I planned to for six months, come back, go schooling, do the whole typical thing, right, get a job and all that, but what I ended up doing was staying there for three years in that academy. I got this opportunity as a foreigner to perform with the demo team, and that’s a huge opportunity, like not a lot of people get to do that. Just to get an idea, we trained like eight hours a day, right? You get like two hours of hot water at night to shower and there’s like moldy, crusty facilities and everyone crams in there at night. Bathrooms are like all squatters, you’re literally looking at somebody while they’re watching you taking number two or whatever. It’s just that kind of situation.”

Yang also talked his experience as a performer at Cirque du Soleil and commented on Demetrious Johnson’s loss to Adriano Moraes and the global ruleset that One adopts.

Tudor Leonte started writing about mixed martial arts in 2013 for Italian media outlets. His journey with Sherdog began in 2018 and now he covers One Championship and countless European shows. You can follow him on Twitter @MrTudorLeonte.

There's a vid behind the link

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[GeneChing]

Put these two in the cage. I'd watch the hell out of that fight.

‘He Doesn’t Know Anything About Martial Arts’ – Chatri Sityodtong Claps Back at Dana White
Published 10/04/2021, 6:35 AM EDT


By ARMAN KHAN
ONE Championship’s claim to being the “Home of Martial Arts” isn’t just a simple battle cry, it’s the core ethos for the now 10-year-old promotion.

For the past decade, ONE has featured not only the best mixed martial artists in the world, but also elite fighters across Muay Thai, kickboxing, submission grappling, and the like.

That’s why when someone like UFC President Dana White took potshots at the hybrid MMA-Muay Thai special rules match between Demetrious “Mighty Mouse” Johnson and Rodtang “The Iron Man” Jitmuangnon at ONE X in December, ONE Chairman and CEO Chatri Sityodtong couldn’t help but fire back.

“I don’t think Dana knows how to fight,” Sityodtong said at the ONE: Revolution post-event interviews, in direct response to White’s comments.

“Dana is a great businessman, but he doesn’t know anything about martial arts. I don’t even think he knows how to throw a leg kick. He talks like it with his athletes, but I’d love to see a video of him throwing a leg kick. I don’t think he’s even qualified to talk about Muay Thai.”

White had recently made comments about the Johnson-Rodtang matchup, saying it was “weird” and would “not work.” Sityodtong doesn’t believe White is in a position to give his opinion on the bout.

Is Chatri Sityodtong the right person to talk about martial arts?

To say Sityodtong knows what he’s talking about when it comes to martial arts is an understatement.

Not only is Sityodtong one of the prime movers in one of the world’s biggest sports properties, but he himself is also a martial artist through and through, having been a Muay Thai practitioner for close to four decades now, as well as recently earning a brown belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.

“It’s different. I’ve been doing Muay Thai for 37 years and still train every day, and I do BJJ five to six times a week,” Sityodtong said.

In comparison, White practiced boxing back in his teen years before he eventually became a manager and a businessman.

Demetrious Johnson vs. Rodtang Jitmuangnon hybrid match was a calculated move

Sityodtong clarified that this unique setup for the Johnson-Rodtang bout wasn’t done on a whim. Rather, it was a calculated move aimed at pitting two of the best in their respective disciplines in this one-of-a-kind showcase for the promotion’s 10 year anniversary.

“We wanted to do something spectacular and something different and I said, let’s also pay homage to Asian MMA and the history of Asian MMA,” Sityodtong said.

“This is our 10th year anniversary and I said let’s do something with world title fights but at the same time, let’s do something that celebrates the true spirit of what Japan started because I don’t think people realize but Shooto is actually the first mixed martial arts organization in history.”

“So I told my team: Think of a crazy fight that we could do. It’s a one-off thing, it’s not like we’re going to do this every event with other fighters. It was just a crazy idea to celebrate Asian MMA.”

Sityodtong on the difference between UFC and ONE Championship

As for White, Sityodtong understood the American’s hesitance on this unique hybrid match. But all innovations have their own set of detractors in their heyday, and at the end of the day, it all boils down to the difference of the promotions at their core.

“We have a different approach. UFC is the largest mixed martial arts organization in the world. ONE is the largest martial arts organization in that we have many verticals of martial arts,” Sityodtong said.

“We have mixed martial arts, we have Muay Thai, we have kickboxing, we’ve even had boxing world title fights, we’ve had submission grappling. We try to excite and delight and surprise fans, combat sports fans from all over the world and from all genres. In many ways, it’s not just martial arts being ONE. I do believe all martial artists on the planet irrespectively, whether it’s karate, taekwondo or wrestling, or boxing or Muay Thai, we are all on the same path.”

In conclusion, Chatri Sityodtong said: “ONE is the home of Martial Arts. He can take whatever digs at ONE he wants, I’ll take a dig at his leg kicks.”

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[GeneChing]

This Shaolin Monk Turned MMA Fighter Is A Beast
ONE Championship 4 days ago

Watch the best hits of Xie Wei's exceptional ONE Championship career.
© ONE Championship Watch the best hits of Xie Wei's exceptional ONE Championship career.
Chinese knockout artist Xie Wei spent four years training under the tutelage of the Shaolin warrior monks before fulfilling his longtime dream of becoming a professional mixed martial artist! Relive “The Hunter’s” wildest highlights in ONE, featuring his shocking knockout of Cambodian Kun Khmer fighter Chan Rothana and more!

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[GeneChing]

"Destiny lies where you put most of your energy" - Xie Wei talks transition from Shaolin monk to ONE Championship fighter

i[Photo Credit: ONE Championship] Xie Wei

Timothy Wheaton
CONTRIBUTOR
Modified 01 Jun 2022

Thousands of years of martial arts have been developed through the Shaolin Temple. Former Shaolin monk Xie Wei stepped away from his studies there to enter MMA.

Today, he is a promising prospect in ONE Championship and combines modern MMA with ancient martial arts teaching.

'The Hunter' Xie Wei was inspired by movies he saw online to study Shaolin Kung Fu. He spent years drilling at the legendary temple and eventually became a martial arts instructor there.

The Shaolin Temple in Zhengzhou, China dates back nearly 1,500 years and today, it is a UNESCO Heritage Site. The monks at this temple studied and developed both Zen Buddhism and martial arts. It is said that the basis for all martial arts began here.

Xie Wei became a warrior monk and studied Shaolin Kung Fu to become a teacher of it. When he decided to leave the temple and pursue a career in MMA, this decision was not supported by his family. However, after seeing him perform, they came around. Their support pushed him even harder to succeed.

Speaking to ONE, Wei said:

“In the beginning, they didn’t support me, but since my father watched me perform in my first fight he saw something I couldn’t and that makes him realize I have the material for this."

Turning from traditional Kung Fu to Mixed Martial Arts is not an easy path. He had his first professional MMA fight in 2017 and traded wins and losses. With each setback, his coach always helped support and educate him. Losses became opportunities to learn.

His coach, Liu Jin Wen, was an important factor in teaching this lesson. Wei explained:

"No matter whether I won or lost, [my coach] always helped me to analyze my fights so I can see how I performed in each one. My coach has a saying, ’Your destiny lies where you put most of your energy and time,’ and you will get what you work for. He tells me if I work hard I will see the results, but meanwhile, enjoy the process.”

Eventually, Xie Wei developed and showed enough promise that in 2019, he made his debut in the ONE Hero Series.


The Chinese-born fighter put together a very impressive win streak as he entered ONE Championship. Xie Wei was developing his all-round skills but was still very dangerous on the feet due to his past training.

Incredibly, the young fighter won his first five fights in a row in ONE, all by way of KO/TKO. In fact, he was able to stop three of his opponents in the very first round.

Importantly, he never let the success get to him. Instead, he treated these fights as a learning experience. Speaking to ONE Championship, he stated:

"I treated it as part of my training – training like a soldier to make myself tougher. To me, ONE Hero Series was a preparation and a chance to know myself more clearly."

Xie moved from ONE Warrior series to ONE Championship, and faced Filipino Danny Kingad on his debut. Kingad is a former top title contender and Grand Prix runner-up to Demetrious Johnson.

It was a tall order for a young and developing fighter such as Wei. He lost this bout, his official debut in ONE, via unanimous decision. It was a disappointing result, but it did prove that he belonged on the main stage. He hung in there with the best of the division.

The young fighter took a lesson from that loss and began working even harder. His goal of ONE Championship gold never wavered.

“I have already passed the hardest test in my ONE debut against Danny Kingad... But that’s just history now. I will get back to my winning streak very soon. And in the near future, I’ll become China’s first male world champion.”

Since this loss, Xie Wei has put together an impressive series of victories. He first stopped Chan Rothana in the third round with a series of punches. It was an important fight to get back in the win column.

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Chinese star Xie Wei 🇨🇳 starts the show with a third-round KO of Chan Rothana! #ONECollisionCourse #WeAreONE #ONEChampionship

'The Hunter' next met Kantharaj Shankar Agasa, a wrestling-based fighter. Xie was able to defend against most of the aggressive takedown attempts from Agasa. Even when he was taken down, he was able to get back to his feet. This was an important test for him.

A flying knee which landed for Xie Wei opened a large cut on his opponent. The bleeding could not be stopped so 'The Hunter' was declared the winner via TKO.

Dae Hwan Kim was the most recent fight for Xie Wei. He faced early adversity in and got dropped with a punch in round one. He then survived a submission attempt.

Xie Wei survived round one just to give it all back in round two. Wei dropped his opponent and nearly finished him. Going into the third frame, Xie was the better conditioned fighter.

Kim was hit with sharper punches from a fighter who had more energy. Wei dug to the body and won via liver-punch TKO. Having begun his ONE Championship career with a loss, 'The Hunter' has now picked up three TKO wins in a row.

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"The Hunter" hits the liver! 😱 #ONEBattleground3 #WeAreONE #ONEChampionship

Xie Wei will next face submission specialist Reece McLaren on June 3 at ONE 158. A win here would likely move him into the top five rankings in the flyweight division. A victory would also bring him even closer to fighters such as Adriano Moraes and 'Mighty Mouse' Demetrious Johnson.

The former Shaolin monk is looking to hold a ONE Championship title. He is hoping for another victory on June 3 to move closer to that goal.

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[GeneChing]

Exclusive | ONE Championship has new anti-doping partner, will drug test athletes at all events
Martial arts promotion will start testing athletes at next weekend’s double header of events in Singapore, including Amazon Prime Video debut
All athletes will be informed of the new policy via an internal memo, a copy of which the Post has seen

Nicolas Atkin
Published: 9:01pm, 20 Aug, 2022


ONE Championship CEO and chairman Chatri Sityodtong speaks at a press conference ahead of ONE X in Singapore. Photos: ONE Championship
ONE Championship has a new anti-doping partner that will drug test all of its athletes, starting with next weekend’s double header of events at Singapore Indoor Stadium, a source has told the Post.
The martial arts promotion gets back to action in its home city with ONE 160 on the evening of August 26, before returning the following morning for its first event on Amazon Prime Video, which will be broadcast in prime time in the US the night before.
The arrangement will remain in place for all future events, the source said, with all athletes to be informed of the new policy via an internal memo, a copy of which the Post has seen.
ONE’s new drug testing partner, International Doping Tests & Management – a subsidiary of Drug Free Sport International – will “independently handle all testing for illegal substances”, according to the memo.
ONE has not publicly drug-tested its athletes before in its 11-year history, but reportedly planned to introduce World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) standard testing in 2019.
“It is true that we began doing WADA testing actually last year,” ONE chairman and CEO Chatri Sityodong told a press conference in Manila in January 2019.
“Mighty Mouse” Demetrious Johnson – one of the promotion’s most high-profile fighters – has previously claimed he has been tested behind the scenes, and that his samples were processed by WADA.
“People over in North America might think that everyone over in ONE Championship is on the juice. We get drug-tested. I got drug-tested two times,” the former UFC flyweight champion told Sherdog in 2019.
“I got tested Saturday at my last weigh-in, and then I got tested right after the fight. [They] took two samples, just like I did with USADA [United States Anti-Doping Agency], and they took it to the WADA labs.”
Johnson’s former promotion, the UFC – where he defended his flyweight title a record 11 consecutive times before losing to Henry Cejudo in August 2018 – began an out-of-competition drug testing partnership with USADA in July 2015.
The 36-year-old American (27-4-1) signed for ONE two months after losing his title, and debuted in the promotion in March 2019, going on to win the flyweight Grand Prix and earning a crack at divisional champion Adriano Moraes.
The Brazilian beat Johnson by second-round TKO in a huge upset in April 2021. The pair will rematch for 33-year-old Moraes’ title in the main event of ONE on Prime Video 1.

Demetrious Johnson congratulates Adriano Moraes on defeating him in April 2021. The pair will rematch at ONE on Prime Video 1 in Singapore.
The first card on Amazon’s streaming service will also feature the semi-finals of the ONE flyweight Muay Thai Grand Prix, comprising Rodtang Jitmuangnon against Savvas Michael, and Superlek Kiatmoo9 taking on Walter Goncalves.
The ONE on Prime Video 1 co-main event will pit bantamweight Muay Thai champion Nong-O Gaiyanghadao against British veteran Liam “The Hitman” Harrison.
The night before, the ONE 160 card will be headlined by a rematch between lightweight champion Ok Rae-yoon and Christian Lee, who surrendered his belt in September 2021 when a controversial unanimous decision went the South Korean’s way.
The ONE 160 co-main event will see Chinese knockout artist Tang Kai challenge Vietnamese-American featherweight champ Thanh Le.

CONVERSATIONS
Nicolas Atkin

Nico is a production editor on the South China Morning Post’s sport desk, where he covers mixed martial arts (MMA) in Asia, as well as local sport in Hong Kong. He was previously a sports writer and editor for ESPN.

Overdue. Glad they're sorting it.

[GeneChing]

Tim Casey Senior Contributor

Aug 19, 2022,06:00am EDT


Demetrious Johnson, left, of the United States and Tatsumitsu Wada of Japan, face off during the ... [+] COPYRIGHT 2019 THE ASSOCIATED PRESS. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
ONEONE 0.0% Championship, a Singapore-based professional martial arts league valued last year at more than $1 billion, plans on hosting its first event in the United States during the first half of next year.

Chatri Sityodtong, ONE Championship’s CEO and chairman who founded the company in 2011, said he is considering numerous locations for the first U.S. event. He expects to have multiple cards in the U.S. in 2023.

As of now, all of ONE Championship’s more than 100 events since its inception have been held in Asia. Each of the events since the coronavirus pandemic began in March 2020 has been in Singapore, including the upcoming Aug. 26 card that will be the first ONE Championship event to air on AmazonAMZN +0.9% Prime Video.

Earlier this year, ONE Championship and Amazon signed a five-year contract for rights in the U.S. and Canada that Sityodtong says is worth “more than eight figures,” meaning more than $10 million. The agreement calls for Amazon to stream at least 12 ONE Championship cards each year. Anyone with an Amazon Prime membership can watch the events for no additional charge.

ONE Championship previously had a North American broadcast agreement with Turner Sports that began in 2019. Last year, four ONE Championship cards aired on TNT. When the Turner deal ended, ONE Championship hired mega-agency CAA to look for a media rights deal in the U.S. and Canada.

“We had a few offers and ended up choosing Amazon because Amazon is an absolute giant,” Sityodtong said.

He added: “(Amazon is) very tight in their quality, They’ve selected NFL, Champions League, ONE. They’re really going after the very best properties in the world. They’re not trying to do a shotgun approach. They’re trying to be really targeted and find long-term partnerships. We’re very grateful to have Amazon.”

Since its founding, ONE Championship has raised $515 million, including $150 million in a December 2021 round that valued the company at $1.4 billion, according to Sityodtong. Guggenheim Investments, a New York-based asset manager with more than $228 billion in assets under management, and the Qatar Investment Authority, Qatar’s sovereign wealth fund, led the latest round.

Earlier this week, Bloomberg reported that Group One Holdings, ONE Championship’s parent company, is considering an initial public offering (IPO) in the U.S. and plans to change its legal domicile from Singapore to the Cayman Islands. That follows a December 2021 report from DealStreetAsia that Group One was considering going public via a merger with Gores Holdings VIII, Inc., a special purpose acquisition company whose shares are listed on the Nasdaq exchange.

Group One also owns ONE esports, an esports events and online media company, and “The Apprentice: ONE Championship Edition,” a reality television show where the winner works under Sityodtong for a year and earns a $250,000 salary.

Sityodtong declined to comment on the Bloomberg report, but he noted that Group One is working with Goldman Sachs and Credit Suisse as its investment bankers.

“We’re always looking at different opportunities around the world for global expansion,” Sityodtong said. “I can’t confirm or deny that (IPO) rumor, but I can just say we’re always actively looking…We’re always looking at various opportunities to accelerate our growth.”

Sityodtong added that those growth plans include expanding its audience and hosting live events in the U.S. and Europe. ONE Championship is already popular in Asia, and the company has broadcast deals in 154 countries.

Still, Sityodtong referred to the Amazon agreement as “the most important deal we’ve done in history” because of the company’s reach with more than 200 million Prime subscribers throughout the world.

ONE Championship mostly features MMA and muay thai bouts, but it also offers kickboxing, boxing and other disciplines. That differentiates ONE Championship from the UFC, the dominant combat sports company that only has MMA bouts.

The Aug. 26 ONE Championship card is headlined by an MMA bout featuring flyweight champion Adriano Moraes of Brazil defending his belt against Demetrious Johnson, a Kentucky native and former UFC flyweight champion. Moraes defeated Johnson via TKO in April 2021.

Amazon has also announced ONE Championship events for four other Friday nights this year: Sept. 30, Oct. 21, Nov. 18 and Dec. 2. Sityodtong is hoping those airings will help drive interest in the organization in the U.S.

“The U.S. is a big market for us because of how big live sports is,” Sityodtong said.

Follow me on Twitter or LinkedIn.
Tim Casey

I have covered professional, college and high school sports for more than two decades. I was a staff writer in the Sacramento Bee's sports department for four years before earning my MBA degree from Georgetown University in 2009. Since then, I have worked for medical and financial media companies and written freelance sports articles for the New York Times, USA Today, Vice Sports, Bleacher Report and numerous other publications and websites. I grew up in Rhode Island, graduated with a degree in psychology from the University of Notre Dame and now live in the Philadelphia suburbs with my wife, two daughters and son.

Hope they do something locally and hope they grant me a press pass. It's been way too long since I've been to a live fight...

[GeneChing]

FanDuel TV Inks Deal With ONE Championship to Bring Martial Arts Events to Network and FanDuel+

NEWS PROVIDED BY
FanDuel Group
Dec 02, 2022, 11:00 ET



– ONE 164: Pacio vs Brooks will be first live event this Saturday –

– Official partnership kicks off January 20 with weekly content –

NEW YORK, Dec. 2, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- ONE Championship (ONE), the largest martial arts organization in the world, and FanDuel, the premier online gaming company in North America, have inked a new deal that will bring ONE Championship's action-packed martial arts events to the newly launched FanDuel TV network.

The partnership, featuring weekly Asia primetime events officially kicks off on Friday, January 20. To give viewers an early preview of the content to come, FanDuel TV will also air ONE 164: Pacio vs. Brooks this Saturday, December 3.


from left to right: Joshua Pacio & Jarred Brooks (top), Superlek Kiatmoo9, Panpayak Jitmuangnon, Brandon Vera, Amir Aliakbari
This partnership with ONE will mark the first time that martial arts events are available on FanDuel TV, providing fans and viewers with a new avenue to connect with the sport through viewership and wagering.

"We're eager to continue expanding the variety of content we're offering at FanDuel TV to introduce our audience to emerging sports," said Mike Raffensperger, Chief Commercial Officer, FanDuel. "We've long respected the content the ONE Championship team is producing and are looking forward to bringing their action to our audience through FanDuel TV and FanDuel+."

"We are thrilled to join the FanDuel TV lineup and give our passionate U.S. audience yet another way to engage with ONE Championship," said Chatri Sityodtong, Chairman and CEO, ONE Championship. "Having a quality partner in FanDuel will help raise the profile of our company in the region and provide their viewers with action-packed martial arts events like they have never seen before."

This new content offering joins an already robust lineup of original shows on the network including Kay Adams' morning show Up & Adams; the recently launched NBA-centric show Run It Back with Michelle Beadle, Chandler Parsons and Shams Charania; More Ways To Win with Lisa Kerney; as well as FanDuel's signature horse racing coverage and syndicated content from Pat McAfee and The Ringer. In continued efforts to diversify content, FanDuel TV and FanDuel+ are also airing more than 3,000 hours of live sports including international basketball league action from the National Basketball League (NBL) Australia's professional league, the Chinese Basketball League, as well as the French and German pro leagues as part of a licensing agreement with Sportradar.

FanDuel TV is broadly distributed on linear television through leading cable and satellite distributors including Comcast Xfinity, Spectrum, Verizon FIOS, DirectTV, DISH, Cox Communications, YouTubeTV, and Hulu.

FanDuel+ can be downloaded on Roku, Amazon Fire, Apple TV connected devices and is free to watch using a FanDuel account number.

ONE Championship is a top-five global sports property for digital viewership and engagement, according to Nielsen. ONE events represent the full spectrum of martial arts, with world-class athletes representing more than 80 countries competing across MMA, Muay Thai, kickboxing, submission grappling and more.

ONE Championship was supported by the Talisman Agency in negotiations with FanDuel TV.

About FanDuel TV & FanDuel+
FanDuel Group launched FanDuel TV and its new OTT platform FanDuel+ in September 2022 as a broadly distributed linear cable network and OTT channel. FanDuel TV has quickly established itself as a destination for live sports and complementary sports programming including award winning horse racing coverage, professional basketball and exclusive shows including "Up and Adams" hosted by Kay Adams, "More Ways to Win" hosted by Lisa Kerney and "Run it Back" co-hosted by Michelle Beadle and Chandler Parsons and syndicated content from Bill Simmons The Ringer network. Both FanDuel TV and FanDuel+ are the first linear/digital networks dedicated to sports wagering content and delivering more live sports programming than any other network in America. FanDuel+ is free to download for existing FanDuel customers with accounts on any of its sportsbook, casino, horse racing or daily fantasy platforms.

About FanDuel Group
FanDuel Group is an innovative sports-tech entertainment company that is changing the way consumers engage with their favorite sports, teams, and leagues. The premier gaming destination in the United States, FanDuel Group consists of a portfolio of leading brands across gaming, sports betting, daily fantasy sports, advance-deposit wagering, and TV/media. FanDuel Group has a presence across all 50 states with approximately 17 million customers and nearly 30 retail locations. The company is based in New York with offices in California, New Jersey, Florida, Oregon, Georgia, Portugal, Romania and Scotland. It's network FanDuel TV and FanDuel+ are broadly distributed on linear cable television and through its relationships with leading direct-to-consumer OTT platforms. FanDuel Group is a subsidiary of Flutter Entertainment plc, the world's largest sports betting and gaming operator with a portfolio of globally recognized brands and a constituent of the FTSE 100 index of the London Stock Exchange.

About ONE Championship™
ONE is the world's largest mixed martial arts organization, ranking among the world's top five sports properties for viewership and engagement with a cumulative reach of over 400 million fans, according to Nielsen. ONE produces and distributes world-class events across more than 150 countries, featuring martial artists and World Champions from over 80 nations and all styles of martial arts including MMA, Muay Thai, kickboxing, Brazilian jiu-jitsu, and more. ONE can be viewed on many of the largest global free-to-air and digital broadcasters, including Prime Video Sports, ELEVEN Sports, Star Sports, Beijing TV, iQIYI, One Sports, Abema, IB, NET TV, Vidio, Startimes, Mediapro, Thairath TV, VieOn, Skynet, Mediacorp, Spark Sport, Match TV, Dubai Sports, beIN SPORTS, Globo and more.

ONE is on the advance...

[GeneChing]

ONE Championship rising star Victoria Lee dead at 18

Nolan King
January 7, 2023 5:11 pm ET
Rising mixed martial arts phenom Victoria Lee has died. She was 18.

Lee’s death occurred Dec. 26, according to an Instagram post Saturday by her older sister, ONE Championship atomweight title holder Angela Lee. A cause of death has not been shared.

“She has gone too soon and our family has been completely devastated since then,” Angela Lee wrote. “We miss her. More than anything in this world. Our family will never be the same. Life will never be the same.”

The surname “Lee” bears much weight in the history of ONE. Angela and brother Christian Lee have held titles as two of the promotion’s biggest stars. Victoria was pegged as the next sibling to follow their path.

Scheduled to compete in her fourth MMA bout Jan. 14 at ONE on Prime Video 6, Lee had a 3-0 record in MMA. Lee debuted in February 2021 with a rear-naked choke submission of Sunisa Srisen. After a first-round armbar win over Luping Wang in July 2021, Lee picked up her first TKO against previously undefeated Victoria Souza in September 2021.

Prior to her pro MMA debut, Lee impressed at the junior level across multiple combat sports. She was two-time Hawaiian pankration junior world champion, a Hawaii state wrestling champion, and an IMMAF junior world champion.

According to an obituary posted on Valley of the Temples Memorial Park and Funeral Home (Kanahe, Hawaii), a celebration of life has been scheduled for Jan. 22 before her burial.

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