ONE Championship News

Adam Martin - December 10, 2020

MMA legend Vitor Belfort says he wants to fight free agent Yoel Romero, promising that it would be a “great fight” for the fans. Belfort has yet to make his debut for ONE Championship and is eager to get back into the cage in 2021. Belfort called out Wanderlei Silva in the past, and he recently called for ONE to sign former UFC legends Anderson Silva and Chael Sonnen to fight because at this point he just wants big fights against top-shelf opponents. One of those high-profile opponents just became available on the free-agent market when the UFC cut Romero. If ONE can get a deal done with Romero, then Belfort would take that fight.

Tom Taylor - December 10, 2020

This Friday, at ONE: Big Bang II, Tyler McGuire will make his long awaited return to the ONE Circle when he takes on Agilan Thani. The bout will be McGuire’s first since he came up short in a welterweight title fight with Zebaztian Kadestam in late 2018—his first taste of defeat as a pro mixed martial artist.

Scott Hernandez - December 9, 2020

The lightweight division is widely considered the best weight class in all of MMA, and it looks like it could be better than ever in 2021. Despite the retirement of UFC lightweight champ Khabib Nurmagomedov—the division’s best fighter—a number of other world-class lightweights are poised to accomplish huge things in the New Year.

Tom Taylor - December 4, 2020

On Friday, Asian martial arts powerhouse ONE Championship returned to our screens with the stacked ONE: Big Bang card out of the Singapore Indoor Arena. This ONE Championship card was hit by a handful of last-minute shakeups, but ultimately came together very nicely. The event was topped by a featherweight kickboxing showdown between Marat Grigorian and Ivan Kondratev, which the former won via impressive second-round TKO.

Tom Taylor - December 3, 2020

ONE Championship atomweight star Bi Nguyen is hoping to close out a chaotic year with a huge win over Malaysia’s Jihin Radzuan at ONE: Big Bang, which goes down on the promotion’s home turf in Singapore this Friday. The coronavirus pandemic made 2020 a bumpy year for just about everyone, but it was particularly frustrating for Nguyen. The 31-year-old striking specialist’s bad luck began early in the year, when she was forced out of planned February fight with Japan’s Itsuki Hirata with an injury. March brought another tough break, as Nguyen’s planned Muay Thai bout against Rudzma Abubakar fell through amid the early chaos of the pandemic. The trouble then continued in the third quarter of the year, when ONE Championship’s attempt to reschedule the failed February fight with Hirata came up empty—ostensibly because the Japanese fighter didn’t sign her contract.

Tom Taylor - December 2, 2020

ONE Championship flyweight star Demetrious Johnson has responded to some recent praise from UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya. Adesanya was recently asked who he considers the greatest fighter in MMA history, and promptly identified Johnson as his pick.

Tom Taylor - December 2, 2020

The ongoing coronavirus pandemic has made 2020 a very tough year for MMA, but 2021 looks like it could much better—particularly for the women’s side of the sport. As the 2021 calendar starts to fill up, a number of female fighters look poised for huge things, from the UFC’s Octagon, to the ONE Championship Circle, to the PFL and Bellator MMA cages.

Tom Taylor - December 1, 2020

American grappling star turned mixed martial artist Garry Tonon will return to action this Friday night in what he considers his toughest bout so far. The multiple-time Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu World Champion will look to climb the featherweight ranks with a victory over his next foe, in hopes of landing a shot at the belt in the very near future.

Adam Martin - November 27, 2020

MMA legend Vitor Belfort has called out rival Anderson Silva and fellow veteran Chael Sonnen, saying to “bring the legends back.” Belfort fought Silva at UFC 126 in February 2011 and suffered a historic KO loss after Silva landed an incredible front kick to finish him. Belfort and Silva have always been tied to a rematch but to this point, nothing has ever been booked. As for Sonnen, Belfort was supposed to fight him at UFC 175 in July 2014, but Sonnen failed his drug test and the bout was canceled. All three fighters are no longer in the UFC, with Belfort part of ONE Championship, Sonnen with Bellator, and Silva a free agent.

Tom Taylor - November 27, 2020

ONE Championship has announced the launch of third-party martial arts content on the ONE Super App, which will also stream live events from top regional martial arts promotions around the world. The first of these co-branded events will take place on November 28, when Russian martial arts promotion, Russian Cagefighting Championship (RCC), and Fair Fight Promotion (FFP) host a Road to ONE tournament, with athletes competing for a contract in ONE Championship. Fair Fight XIII, Featuring Road to ONE will be streamed live on the ONE Super App.

Tom Taylor - November 25, 2020

He’s expected to challenge ONE Heavyweight World Champion Brandon “The Truth” Vera sometime in 2021, but already, former UFC star Arjan “Singh” Bhullar is salivating at the possible matchups to be had in the newly-revamped heavyweight division in ONE Championship. The 34-year-old is 10-1 overall in his career, with impressive wins over Marcelo Golm and Juan Adams, and a recent three-round unanimous decision victory over former ONE heavyweight title challenger and Cage Warriors heavyweight champ Mauro Cerilli.

Tom Taylor - November 24, 2020

ONE Championship will not be pursuing the services of new free agent, former UFC middleweight champion Anderson Silva. Silva, widely regarded as one of the greatest fighters of all time, was released from his UFC contract after a loss to Uriah Hall on Halloween night. While he intends to continue fighting rather than hang up the gloves, his list of options in terms of his new home is growing shorter.

Tom Taylor - November 13, 2020

On Friday, ONE Championship returned to our screens with the action-packed ONE: Inside the Matrix III card from the Singapore Indoor Arena. The card was headlined by a bantamweight contender fight, as the division’s former champion Kevin Belingon took on UFC veteran John Lineker. The bout marked Belingon’s opportunity to bounce back from a loss to Bibiano Fernandes, while Lineker looked to improve to 2-0 in ONE Championship after defeating Muin Gafurov in his debut with the promotion last year.

Harry Kettle - November 13, 2020

ONE Championship star Demetrious Johnson has admitted that he may never fight again as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Johnson made the transition over to ONE from the Ultimate Fighting Championship in late 2018 with Ben Askren heading in the opposite direction, and ever since then, he’s been able to go 3-0 in the promotion – with all three of those wins coming in the 2019 Flyweight Grand Prix.

Tom Taylor - November 10, 2020

UFC veteran John Lineker came into ONE Championship having won eight of his last ten fights, all the while building a reputation as a ruthless finisher with very heavy hands. After beating the highly-regarded Muin Gafurov in his promotional debut in October of 2019, Lineker now has the opportunity to put himself into position for a shot at the ONE bantamweight belt.

Tom Taylor - November 10, 2020

Former ONE bantamweight champion Kevin Belingon doesn’t expect his showdown with UFC veteran John Lineker to go the distance. The two hard-hitting bantamweights are set to collide in the main event of ONE: Inside the Matrix III, a previously-recorded event from Singapore scheduled for air on Friday, November 13th (SGT).

Tom Taylor - November 4, 2020

UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya has shared his picked for the greatest fighter in mixed martial arts history. Adesanya was asked to chime in on the GOAT debate during a recent appearance on Submission Radio. The champ quickly pointed to former UFC flyweight champion Demetrious “Mighty Mouse” Johnson, who now competes under the ONE Championship banner.

Tom Taylor - November 3, 2020

Reigning ONE Welterweight World Champion Kiamrian “Brazen” Abbasov of Novorossiysk, Russia is extremely kind and humble outside of competition, but once the cage door shuts, he turns into a force of destruction.  Abbasov returns to action this Friday night at ONE: Inside the Matrix II, a previously-recorded event in Singapore, scheduled for air on 6 November. “Brazen” will defend his title against highly-touted undefeated American James Nakashima in what should be a high-level affair.