Imagine if UFC CEO, Dana White, celebrated himself during a UFC event. Well, you can head on over to ONE Championship and see the equivalent of that.
The Cayman Islands-based promotion returned to the United States for ONE 168 in Denver, Colorado this past weekend (Fri., Sept. 6, 2024). The event was ONE’s first stateside since ONE Fight Night 10 in May 2023. Therefore, it was a big night for celebrations and announcements.
Along with mixed martial arts (MMA) all-time great and ONE 135-pound Flyweight champion, Demetrious Johnson, announcing his retirement on the night, ONE Founder, Chatri “Sityodtong” Trisiripisal, also took some of the spotlight. During one of his usual hype segments with ONE commentator, Mitch Chilson, Sityodtong was “surprised” by legendary grappler, Renzo Gracie, who randomly awarded Sityodtong with his Brazilian jiu-jitsu (BJJ) black belt. The video of the moment can be seen in the embedded player above.
Sityodtong, 53, had plenty to say in reflection below.
Master Renzo Gracie gave me the biggest surprise this past weekend, promoting me to black belt on the ONE 168 live global broadcast. Without a doubt, earning a black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu has long been one of my biggest dreams in life.
The journey from white belt to black belt ranks among the hardest things I have ever done in my life, especially given my crazy workload and hectic travel as a CEO. I have wanted to give up more times than I can count. I have gone home discouraged more times than I care to admit. I have been submitted more times than I can remember. Yet, my love for jiu-jitsu has somehow always found a way to conquer all. I kept returning to the mats, even through setbacks, injuries, excuses, breaks, and illnesses. The old saying that, “A black belt is just a white belt who never quit,” is 100% true.
I started jiu-jitsu in 2005 in the legendary blue basement of the Renzo Gracie Academy when I was still living in New York City. I received my blue belt in 2007, my purple belt in 2019, my brown belt in 2021, and now my black belt in 2024. During my days as a purple belt and a brown belt, I trained obsessively 5-6x a week wherever I was in the world. I usually just hopped into advanced group classes, be it at EVOLVE in Singapore, Renzo Gracie Academy in New York, Arete BJJ in Bangkok, Carpe Diem in Tokyo, Roger Gracie Academy in London, etc. Everyone knows that Muay Thai has been my greatest passion in life for the last 40 years, but what people don’t know is that Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu has been my greatest obsession.
This journey would not have been possible without the incredible masters and professors who have helped me along the way:
Renzo Gracie
Leo Vieira
Alex Silva
Thales Nakassu
Martin Hartono
Mikey Musumeci
Teco Shinzato
Leandro Brodinho
Gamal Hassan El Amin
Valdir Rodrigues
Eduardo Rigatto Novaes
Guli Kozama
Rodrigo Marello
Almiro Barros
Achilleus Ralli
Roger Gracie
Rafael Gordinho LimaWithout each of you, I would not be here today. Each of you gave me a piece of your game and shared your love of the gentle art with me. You beat me up and made me suffer, but I am eternally grateful for all of the lessons on and off the mats. I would also like to give a shoutout to all of the jiu-jitsu students at EVOLVE in Singapore, Arete BJJ in Bangkok, Carpe Diem in Tokyo, Roger Gracie Academy in London, and of course, Renzo Gracie Academy in New York.
I would also like to give a special shoutout of gratitude to Thales Nakassu for kicking my ass almost every day as a brown belt. I could never have made it to black belt without your teachings and beatings. You played a huge role in getting me to this level. Thank you for everything, Thales!
Thank you all for making me a better martial artist and a better human being. Martial arts is what I love. Martial arts is who I am.
In our suffering, we discover our greatness. OSS!!!
ONE returns to the U.S. with ONE 169 in Atlanta, Georgia in two months (Nov. 8, 2024). ONE events have primarily taken place in Bangkok, Thailand since the start of 2023.