MMA News

Category: ONE

ONE Championship is a Singapore-based fighting promotion founded in 2011. It is Asia’s largest MMA promotion.

  • Injured Kade Ruotolo Out Of ONE 168: Denver Title Fight Following Craig Jones Invitational Win

    Injured Kade Ruotolo Out Of ONE 168: Denver Title Fight Following Craig Jones Invitational Win

    ONE Championship’s upcoming return to the United States has taken a major hit.

    After fortifying its status among combat promotions in Asia, ONE began its pursuit of further prominence on US soil by debuting in the region last year. The successful ONE Fight Night 10 card took place at the 1stBankCenter in Broomfield, where Demetrious Johnson, Rodtang Jitmuangnon, and Stamp Fairtex were among the major winners.

    The organization is back in Colorado almost 16 months later, with Denver’s Ball Arena playing host to ONE’s sophomore US event. But when it comes to putting on a stacked lineup for the American audience, not everything has gone to plan this time around.

    ONE 168, set for this Friday, September 6, first lost its strawweight MMA title headliner between champion Xiong Jing Nan and atomweight queen Stamp after the latter tore her meniscus in May.

    And just as fight week gets underway, the upcoming card has taken another huge blow…

    Ruotolo Out Of Musumeci Super Fight, ‘Dealing With Injuries’ After CJI Triumph

    In the absence of Xiong vs. Stamp, another champ vs. champ showdown was cemented as the main event in Jonathan Haggerty vs. Superlek Kiatmoo9. Co-headlining, meanwhile, was slated to be a submission grappling title fight.

    Among those raising the prominence of submission grappling in ONE are Kade Ruotolo and Mikey Musumeci. The pair were scheduled to do battle for the former’s lightweight title at ONE 168, with “Darth Rigatoni” moving up three weight classes to take on the challenge.

    But after emerging $1 million richer from the inaugural Craig Jones Invitational last month, Ruotolo is carrying injuries and has been left unable to share the Circle with Musumeci in Denver.

    “Just going to start by saying this year has been a hectic one,” Ruotolo wrote on Facebook. “I am proud for accomplishing my goals this year of competing in gi, nogi and mma. I’m unfortunately dealing with injuries. I know a lot of people, including myself and Mikey were looking forward to the One match in Denver but unfortunately it’s off.

    “Im going to be recovering alongside my brother and hope to get back to the mats asap. Massive thank you to @onechampionships for being the best martial arts platform @yodchatri,” he concluded.

    It’s unclear whether Musumeci will remain on the lineup and receive a replacement opponent. But should he and Ruotolo be off the card, ONE 168 will have lost one of its biggest matchups and both of its big-name US athletes.

  • After PFL President Dismisses Pursuing ‘Pain In The Ass’ Muhammad Mokaev, ONE Reportedly Told He’s Re-Signing With UFC

    Muhammad Mokaev’s future has been in question ever since his very public release from the mixed martial arts leader after UFC 304. And now, it seems the best potential alternate option for him has its door closed.

    Or has it?

    According to Drake Riggs of MMA Mania, ONE Championship and Mokaev have had discussions, but the Asian promotion was told that he will be re-signing with the UFC.

    It is unknown if Mokaev will actually get re-signed by the UFC, but Mokaev’s social media activity of late seems to indicate he only is seeking an Octagon return return.

    Muhammad Mokaev Claims He Is Re-Signing With UFC Following Talks With ONE Championship, PFL Expressing Lack Of Interest

    Following the PFL Playoffs card in Nashville on Friday, PFL President Ray Sefo was asked by Brett Cagle at the event’s post-fight press conference about the promotion’s interest in Mokaev. Sefo, however, seemed against the idea.

    “I’ve spoken to people in the know and, apparently, he’s just a pain in the ass to deal with,” Sefo said. “And so, no, we’re not interested.”

    This came following UFC CEO’s Dana White’s comments at the UFC 304 post-fight press conference, where he stated “the PFL is going to get a great undefeated fighter” as he announced the UFC was not looking to re-sign Mokaev following the conclusion of his contract.

    A follow-up claim from Ben Davis stated that Mokaev had attempted to use the PFL as leverage in negotiations, contacting them before the expiration of his UFC contract in Manchester. That claim, however, has since been thrown into question, with Mokaev and his team branding it false.

    Mokaev came out on social media in response to Sefo, claiming he was not going to sign with the PFL regardless and suggesting the the organization is trying to get out in front of things.

    Mokaev was the source of controversy last week after a number of altercations with UFC 304 opponent Manel Kape. The pair went on to have an underwhelming battle at the event, with “The Punisher” getting a win via decision.

  • Muay Thai Star Rodtang Jitmuangnon Returns To The US At ONE 169 In Atlanta

    Muay Thai Star Rodtang Jitmuangnon Returns To The US At ONE 169 In Atlanta

    A staggering fourth title fight has been added to ONE Championship’s debut in Atlanta and it features one of their biggest stars, Rodtang Jitumuagnon.

    As the biggest name in Muay Thai today, “The Iron Man” has become a social media sensation because of his always entertaining fighting style.

    Having featured on ONE Championship’s debut event in the United States last year (ONE Fight Night 10 in Denver), he’s now set to return to the US in November as reported by Sports Illustrated.

    The ONE flyweight Muay Thai world champion will be putting his belt on the line in a rematch with England’s Jacob Smith at the State Farm Arena on November 8.

    They last met back in May of 2022 where Rodtang secured a unanimous decision win to advance in the flyweight Muay Thai Grand Prix.

    The Thai star returned to action in June where he went three rounds with Denis Puric in a kickboxing bout that delivered one of the best fights of the year so far in ONE Championship.

    He last defended his world championship back in November of 2022 where he convincingly beat strawweight champion Joseph Lasiri over five rounds.

    This now makes for a total of four world championship fights for Atlanta, two in MMA and two in Muay Thai.

    Three-division champion Anatoly Malykhin will be defending his heavyweight title against Oumar “Reug Reug” Kane in the main event whilst two-weight king Christian Lee makes his long-awaited return to defend his lightweight crown against Alibeg Rasulov.

    The other title fight sees Tawanchai defend his ONE featherweight Muay Thai world championship against Jo Nattawut in a trilogy fight between the two Thai strikers.

    November 8 has also been rumoured to feature a boxing match between former UFC rivals Rashad Evans and ‘Rampage’ Jackson.

    Read also: Former ONE Championship Strawweight King Jarred Brooks Names Jon Jones As The Perfect Fighter

  • Former Two-Division Champion Reinier de Ridder Parts Ways With ONE Championship, Set To Debut For New Promotion On July 27

    Former Two-Division Champion Reinier de Ridder Parts Ways With ONE Championship, Set To Debut For New Promotion On July 27

    Reinier de Ridder, one of ONE Championship’s top MMA stars, has left the Asian martial arts organization and will soon debut elsewhere.

    After title glory in regional promotions 360 and Hit-FC, de Ridder arrived in ONE Championship five and a half years ago, making a splash on debut by submitting Fan Rong via brabo choke in just 75 seconds.

    The Dutchman went on to win his next six fights, collecting both the middleweight (205 pounds) and light heavyweight (225 pounds) belts along the way, and defending the former twice with submission wins over Kiamrian Abbasov and Vitaly Bigdash.

    Image: ONE Championship

    De Ridder went on to lose both titles to the same man, however, with Anatoly Malykhin first wresting the light heavyweight strap from his possession with a violent knockout at ONE on Prime Video 5 in December 2022.

    “The Dutch Knight” returned 15 months later, this time in defense of his middleweight gold. Malykhin successfully won the belt to secure a history-making third crowning, adding that title to his heavyweight and light heavyweight championships at ONE 166 in Qatar this past March.

    That turned out to be de Ridder’s final outing in the Circle, with the 33-year-old exiting off the back of that two-fight losing skid.

    De Ridder Set For UAE Warriors Debut Post-ONE Exit

    The Dutch fighter will have the chance to return to winning ways soon after his confirmed departure from ONE, with the 33-year-old set to debut under a new promotional banner this month.

    Per MMA Fighting, De Ridder has signed with UAE Warriors and will debut at an event in Abu Dhabi next Saturday, July 27. He’s set to share the cage with Magomedmurad Khasaev in a light heavyweight bout.

    News of de Ridder’s venture away from ONE quickly saw fans ponder a future move to either the UFC or PFL. The latter promotion has already capitalized on the apparent move away from MMA focus in ONE by signing the highly regarded Murad Ramazanov.

    ONE will, however, stage mixed martial arts action in the United States this year, first with ONE 168 in Denver this September.

    Two months later, de Ridder’s two time opponent Malykhin will headline ONE 169 in Atlanta, defending his heavyweight title against Oumar “Reug Reug” Kane.

  • Christian Lee Set To Defend Lightweight Title At ONE 169: Atlanta After Two-Year Hiatus

    Christian Lee Set To Defend Lightweight Title At ONE 169: Atlanta After Two-Year Hiatus

    ONE lightweight and welterweight world champion Christian Lee is set to make his long-awaited return at ONE 169 on November 8 in Atlanta.

    He will be defending his lightweight title against the undefeated Alibeg Rasulov at the State Farm Arena in ONE Championship’s second US event of the year.

    Lee has been out of action since winning the welterweight title at ONE on Prime Video 4 in November of 2022.

    At the end of that year, tragedy struck the Lee family as Christian’s younger sister and former ONE Championship athlete, Victoria, took her own life. This led to her siblings, Christian and Angela, to take a break from the spotlight.

    Christian’s elder sister Angela has since vacated her atomweight title and retired from MMA whilst his younger brother Adrian became the first of the Lee family to compete after Victoria’s passing, when he made his pro debut at ONE 167 in June.

    Christian’s upcoming opponent, Turkey’s Rasulov, made his debut in ONE this past weekend at ONE Fight Night 23 where he won a unanimous decision after going five rounds with former champion Ok Rae Yoon.

    Despite the interim lightweight title being on the line in this fight, Rasulov was unable to win the belt after he made weight but failed his hydration test.

    The lightweight title fight joins two other previously announced world championship clashes on the card for November 8 in Atlanta.

    In the main event, ONE three-weight world champion Anatoly Malykhin will defend his heavyweight title against Oumar “Reug Reug” Kane.

    ONE featherweight Muay Thai world champion Tawanchai will also be in action when he faces Jo Nattawut in a trilogy fight following their closely contested clash at ONE 167.

    Read also: ONE Championship Three-Division Champion Anatoly Malykhin Reacts To Being Called ‘Most Dangerous’ By Islam Makhachev, Says No ‘Escape’ For Francis Ngannou

  • Former ONE Championship Strawweight King Jarred Brooks Names Jon Jones As The Perfect Fighter

    Former ONE Championship Strawweight King Jarred Brooks Names Jon Jones As The Perfect Fighter

    Jarred Brooks has achieved great success since departing the UFC and signing with ONE Championship, where he currently competes in the strawweight division.

    After losing his belt via disqualification at ONE 166 earlier this year, he is set to return at ONE Fight Night 24 in an interim title fight with Gustavo Balart. In the meantime, Brooks recently put together his perfect fighter in an interview with FightWave.

    He picked out which fellow athletes he would combine in order to build an unbeatable force of nature based off naming certain fighters renowned for their specialist skills…

    Jarred Brooks Says Picking Jon Jones For Each Category Would Build A Perfect Fighter

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G0bGB9609-o

    Brooks started with his own specialist field, the grappling realm, where he picked two names who also compete in ONE Championship.

    Garry Tonon was one of the top submission grapplers in the world before making the move to competing in MMA, a venture that Kade Ruotolo has also recently embarked on.

    Brooks has said multiple times that his dream fight would be against the legendary Demetrious Johnson, who is the flyweight champion in ONE. He picked both “Mighty Mouse” and Merab Dvalishvili for cardio.

    In the boxing ranges, he named two featherweights who could be lined up to face one another in the near future as Ilia Topuria and Max Holloway continue to trade words on social media.

    Brooks also didn’t take long to name his pick for which fighter he would want for their kicking game, taking the consensus greatest of all time, Jon Jones.

    After adding “Bones” to his create-a-fighter, Brooks went on to say that, in reality, the correct answer to this question would be to pick the UFC heavyweight champion for each category.

    “It’s Jon Jones, period, though. 100 percent, and I’ve watched him since I was 12.”

    Jones has held the UFC’s heavyweight gold since his divisional debut in Las Vegas last March, which saw him submit Ciryl Gane in quick time.

    The Rochester native is expected to make his first defense against Stipe Miocic this November at Madison Square Garden, a year on from their canceled showdown in New York City.

  • John Lineker KO’s Bibiano Fernandes To Win ONE Championship Title (Video)

    John Lineker is a world champion.

    In the co-main event of ONE Lights Out in Singapore, Lineker was finally fighting Bibiano Fernandes in a highly-anticipated bantamweight title fight. The two were booked earlier this year but Lineker tested positive for COVID-19 which led the fight to be delayed.

    Right off the bat, the champ in Fernandes got an early takedown and held the former UFC fighter down. He held him there for nearly two minutes but Lineker was able to get up. Once that happened, the challenger landed a solid combo that appeared to rock Fernandes but as he was stumbled, he landed a beautiful counter that dropped Lineker down.

    After he got dropped, Lineker was able to scramble on top and finished the last-minute on top of Fernandes, and landed some ground and pound.

    The second round began with both men still being stunned from the last round. Just over a minute into the first round, Bibiano Fernandes shot for another takedown and got it but after a minute of control, John Lineker was able to get back to his feet. Once they were on their feet, Lineker started landing heavy shots to the body and head. After landing some heavy shots, the challenger landed a massive check hook that knocked Fernandes out to become the new champ.

    With the KO win, John Lineker is now 35-9 and is 4-0 in ONE Championship. The Brazilian left the UFC after a decision loss to Cory Sandhagen and signed with the Singapore-based promotion. In the UFC, Lineker went 12-4 with notable wins over Rob Font, Marlon Vera, and Ian McCall.

    As for Bibiano Fernandes, he defended the belt seven times over two title reigns. In his career, he holds notable wins over Kevin Belingon four times, and Joe Warren on the regional scene while losing to Urijah Faber in his second pro fight.

    What do you make of John Lineker winning the ONE bantamweight title?

  • Demetrious Johnson Puts Full-Time Twitch Streamer Dream On Hold

    ONE Championship’s Demetrious Johnson is putting his goals of streaming on Twitch full-time on the back burner.

    There’s a list of fighters who found stardom on Twitch, including Max Holloway, Angela Hill, and “Rampage” Jackson. But Johnson has been in the game longer and feels the streaming service comes with a few obstacles to conquer.

    During his successful streaming career, Johnson hardly had any time for his family. He would train, stream, and repeat. Exhaustion eventually caught up with him, and it was time to put the sticks down and focus on the important things.

    Demetrious Johnson
    Demetrious Johnson, Photo Credit: Game Informer

    “My schedule basically consisted of this: I would go to the gym, train for a session, stream afterward, then get my second session in, come home, eat dinner, kiss my wife, and then go downstairs and stream for another two hours,” Johnson said. At the time, he was making around $3,000 per month from streaming, enough to cover his mortgage. “But then it came to a point where I was like, ‘Why am I doing this? I don’t get to go to bed with my wife. I’m absolutely exhausted. It’s just not worth it,’ ” Johnson told The Washington Post.

    He’s sorry for streamers’ who experience a fluctuation in their followers and subscribers. The thought of being dependent on subscribers to support himself financially does not entice him. Furthermore, the point of him playing video games is simply for enjoyment.

    Training as a mixed martial artist probably sounds daunting to the average gamer. Being one of the greatest fighters in the world is far from easy, but to Johnson, it makes a lot more sense than swimming in Twitch’s algorithm pool and maintaining the support of subscribers.

    Once, “Mighty Mouse” wished to live the seemingly exciting life as a gamer on Twitch. Now, those plans have come to an end.

    The more conversations he has with current streamers and channels he views, the less desirable the idea becomes. Now, Demetrious Johnson fights with ONE Championship.

    “Wake up every day and stream full time? … Oh god no. I couldn’t do it,” Johnson said during an interview on The Washington Post’s Friday live stream, Press Play. “Sometimes I feel bad for some of the streamers; one moment they have a s—load [of subscribers], and then next thing you know, they take a little time off, and their subscriber numbers just drop. I’ll play video games because I enjoy it, but I don’t want it to be my livelihood,” Johnson continues to say.

    Johnson’s love for video games will never diminish. However, now just isn’t the time for him to pursue a full-time streaming career on Twitch.

    At this time, his focus is on his next bout with ONE Championship. On March 26 he faces off with flyweight Muay Thai Champion Rodtang Jitmuangnon in a special rules match.

    What are your thoughts on “Mighty Mouse” Demetrious Johnson giving up being a full-time Twitch streamer?

  • Demetrious Johnson’s Mixed-Special-Rules Fight Now March 26

    Demetrious Johnson is set to make his return to competition in a very intriguing way when he takes on ONE Championship Flyweight Muay Thai Champion Rodtang Jitmuangnon on March 26.

    CEO Chatri Sityodtong announced the fight last year on The MMA Hour after the original ONE X card planned for December 5 2021 was postponed.

    The mixed-special-rules fight will have alternating rounds between Muay Thai and MMA. The first and third rounds will be under Muay Thai rules, and the second and fourth rounds will be MMA. This will be a tall test for Johnson, as Jitmuangnon has competed in over 300 professional Muay Thai bouts with a total of 267 wins. The ONE Muay Thai champion is currently on a five-fight winning streak and has held the title since August 2, 2019.

    What makes this fight interesting, though, is that Jitmuangnon has never competed in MMA, just as Johnson has never competed in Muay Thai. After losing for the first time in ONE Championship in April to flyweight champion Adriano Moraes, Johnson did express interest in competing in a kickboxing bout, so this unique fight announcement should not come as a total surprise.

    Also announced for this card is atomweight champion Angela Lee defending her title against Stamp Fairtex, who has held championships in multiple combat sports. This bout will serve as the main event for the card. Additionally, Adriano Moraes will take on Yuya Wakamatsu in his first flyweight title defense since defeating Demetrious Johnson last year.

    Stick with MMA News for further updates on this event, including the broadcast information. Also, be sure to catch our coverage of ONE X on March 26!

    Are you excited to see the mixed rules bout between Demetrious Johnson and Rodtang Jitmuangnon on March 26?

  • ONE CEO Disagrees With How White Does Business, Open To A Fight

    Chatri Sityodtong doesn’t agree with how Dana White runs the UFC.

    Sityodtong, the CEO of ONE Championship, is all about martial arts and respect, and he doesn’t like when his fighters talk trash. White and the UFC, however, embrace trash-talking because it helps sell pay-per-views. That is one of the things Sityodtong doesn’t like about how the UFC is run.

    “I think he is an outstanding businessman,” Sityodtong said on The MMA Hour. “I don’t necessarily agree with the way he does things, but obviously he’s built UFC into a phenomenal company. There’s no ifs, ands, or buts. But I don’t think he knows anything about martial arts. I don’t think he knows anything about fighting. I think he’s a fan, so I have differences. I come from the martial arts community. I come from the martial arts background. And how I treat my athletes, they are my peers. I come from the community. It’s very, very different.

    “I think if you’ve never been punched in the face or choked out, you can disrespect people publicly [with your comments],” Sityodtong continued. “But if you have had lifelong hard training — I just say we have stylistic differences. I don’t particularly respect the way he talks down to athletes.”

    Chatri Sityodtong (Image Credit: Paul Miller/Bloomberg)

    With Chatri Sityodtong disagreeing with how Dana White runs the UFC and him claiming White doesn’t know martial arts, he says he is open to a fight with him. They are both over 50-years-old, but Sityodtong is confident he would beat the American with ease.

    “I’m a lifelong martial artist,” Sityodtong said about a fight with White. “I’ve been doing Muay Thai for 35 years and I’m a jiu-jitsu brown belt. I train five, six times a week. If there’s a fight with someone my age, why not? I’m 50, turning 51 this year. I train five, six days a week, one or two hours every day.”

    Although Sityodtong is open to a fight against White, it is highly unlikely the bout happens. White is just focused on running the UFC, and he doesn’t gain anything by fighting the ONE CEO. Nevertheless, Sityodtong’s remarks are sure to get more people talking about him and his promotion.

    What do you make of Chatri Sityodtong calling out Dana White for a fight?

  • ONE Championship Will Award Fight Bonuses Of $50,000 For “Gameness”

    ONE Championship will be awarding fighters who give it their all.

    ONE Championship is hoping to have a very successful 2022, and they will be making it more lucrative for fighters. According to The South China Morning Post, the organization will be handing out fight bonuses of $50,000. Much like the UFC, these fight bonuses will be given to fighters who put on exceptional performances.

    ONE Championship CEO Chatri Sityodtong spoke a bit about why they are giving out these bonuses.

    “We have always given out $50,000 bonuses but it was not every event. It was if there were spectacular performances we have given out for the last several years,” CEO Chatri Sityodtong explained on The MMA Hour. “This year is the first year that we will give out every single show, several of these $50,000 bonuses. Our main criteria is performance of course, but gameness. Gameness we define as fighting every second of the fight to finish.”

    The UFC has been giving out performance bonuses for a long time. While they typically give out “Fight of the Night” and “Performance of the Night” bonuses, ONE Championship will be using a different type of scale to award these prizes.

    “Even someone who loses can win,” Sityodtong said. “We gave this bonus to Timofey Nastyukhin who knocked out Eddie Alvarez, he fought Dagi Arslanaliev just a few weeks ago, and man, you have to watch this fight, I don’t know if you saw, no one expected it to be this crazy. I decided that both of them get $50,000 because it was crazy gameness.”

    ONE Championship will now move forward with giving these bonuses out every event. They hold events roughly twice a month and have a very big show coming up on March 26. That event will be called ONE Championship: ONE X event and is set to feature big names such as Demetrious Johnson, Eddie Alvarez, Shinya Aoki, and Sage Northcutt.

    Do you like the criteria that ONE Championship will use to give out bonuses?

  • Report: Managers File Lawsuit Against ONE Champion Adriano Moraes

    Talent managers Alex Davis and Samir Nadaf have reportedly filed a lawsuit against ONE Championship fighter Adriano Moraes.

    The lawsuit alleges Moraes owes the managers over $100,000 due to a breach of contract.

    The issue stems from a claim that Moraes wasn’t paying the managers an agreed-upon amount of his income. News of the filing was first reported by Guilherme Cruz of MMA Fighting.

    Details obtained by MMA Fighting allege that Moraes was giving his management less than what he agreed to give them as part of a deal. The managers claim he agreed to pay them 10 percent of fight purses and 20 percent of his money from sponsorships, but they say he only gave them 5 percent for his last two outings.

    Managers Allege They Are Owed $35,000 For Fight Against Johnson

    Adriano Moraes, Demetrious Johnson
    Adriano Moraes, Demetrious Johnson, Credit: USA TODAY Sports

    Davis and Nadaf are reportedly seeking $113,000 in total.

    Moraes pulled off a big win earlier this year, stopping former UFC Flyweight Champion Demetrious Johnson with strikes. Documents filed in the lawsuit claim that Moraes was given $50,000 to show for that fight, along with another $50,000 for winning. He was also allegedly given an extra $250,000 as a bonus afterward.

    Davis and Nadaf claim they were owed $35,000 for the fight weekend but only received $2,500 from Moraes.

    “As a professional rule, I don’t make comments about contracts, money and etc publicly,” said Davis when requested for comment by MMA Fighting. “I seek the justice when I’m in need about any situation, and I’ll wait and humbly agree to its decision.”

    Moraes started his third run as the ONE 135-pound Champion in early 2019. In that fight, he avenged a loss he previously took against Geje Eustaquio. Moraes has fought on the ONE Championship roster since 2013.