Tag: ONE Championship

Michael Bisping snaps back at ONE Championship CEO Chatri Sityodtong: ‘He’s attacked the UFC’

Michael BispingMichael Bisping wants to see ONE CEO Chatri Sityodtong put his best lightweight fighters against the UFC’s reigning division champion, Islam Makhachev. Bisping’s comments come on the heels of Sityodtong dubbing UFC strikers as “sloppy” and “mediocre-ish” while putting over his own product in a recent interview with the South China Morning Post. “What you […]

Michael Bisping

Michael Bisping wants to see ONE CEO Chatri Sityodtong put his best lightweight fighters against the UFC’s reigning division champion, Islam Makhachev.

Bisping’s comments come on the heels of Sityodtong dubbing UFC strikers as “sloppy” and “mediocre-ish” while putting over his own product in a recent interview with the South China Morning Post.

“What you see in, let’s say the UFC, is very sloppy, mediocre-ish striking because they’re not strikers,” Sityodtong said. “A typical UFC fighter is a D-1 college wrestler, 7-0 in the minor leagues and then they do a little bit of striking then they enter the UFC. At ONE, all these are world champions before they arrive and they’re already multiple [time] world champions at their peak of their career when they arrive.”

Responding on his Believe You Me podcast, Michael Bisping understood that Sityodtong was simply trying to promote his company and his roster of world-class fighters, including Muay Thai sensation Rodtang Jitmuangnon.

“Yeah, I mean, first of all, he’s being a promoter,” Bisping said. “Fair play to him. He’s saying we got the better fighters, we got the better strikers, and so on and so forth. In doing so, he’s attacked the UFC and the quality of the fighters. Granted, Rodtang and some of the fighters he has mentioned, they’re phenomenal, absolutely phenomenal.”

Bisping Challenges ONE Championship CEO to Bring His Best Lightweights

With that said, ‘The Count’ was more than ready to lay down a challenge, suggesting ONE Championship bring its best lightweight fighters and see how they do against the UFC’s reigning 155-pound monster, Islam Makhachev.

“Bring your best strikers over to the UFC and put them, they’ll be lightweights, put them up against Islam Makhachev and see what happens,” Bisping added. “Guaranteed they’ll be choked out pretty quickly” (h/t Sportskeeda).

ONE Championship’s current lightweight king is Christian Lee, the brother of recently retired atomweight queen Angela Lee.

Christian Lee has established himself as one of the promotion’s prolific finishers, amassing an impressive 17-4 record with a 94% finish rate, including 12 KOs and one submission. In his last outing, Lee scored a fourth-round knockout against Kiamrian Abbasov to claim the welterweight title and become a two-division champion under the ONE banner.

Who do you think would win in a fight between Christian Lee and Islam Makhachev?

Jon Jones blasts ‘Hater’ Chatri Sityodtong amid rift: ‘Without the UFC there would be no ONE Championship’

Jon Jones blasts 'hater' Chatri Sityodtong no one would watch ONE Championship without the UFCUndisputed UFC heavyweight champion, Jon Jones has hit out at ONE Championship CEO, Chatri Sityodtong overnight on his official Instagram – claiming without the UFC, there would be no ONE Championship for the Singapore native to manage, before labelling him a “hater” amid recent comments about the Dana White-led organization. Jones, a former two-time undisputed […]

Jon Jones blasts 'hater' Chatri Sityodtong no one would watch ONE Championship without the UFC

Undisputed UFC heavyweight champion, Jon Jones has hit out at ONE Championship CEO, Chatri Sityodtong overnight on his official Instagram – claiming without the UFC, there would be no ONE Championship for the Singapore native to manage, before labelling him a “hater” amid recent comments about the Dana White-led organization.

Jones, a former two-time undisputed light heavyweight champion, is slated to headline UFC 295 in November at Madison Square Garden, taking on the returning former two-time heavyweight champion, Stipe Miocic in a heavyweight championship clash.

Sidelined until March of this year, Jones made a stunning three-year hiatus snapping return to combat sports with a spectacular first round submission win over former interim heavyweight champion, Ciryl Gane, submitting the Frenchman with a first round guillotine choke to nab the vacant divisional crown. 

Sharing his thoughts on the talent pool available to him at ONE Championship compared to rival organization, UFC, the above-mentioned, Sityodtong claimed that many strikers under the North American-based promotional banner are more than “sloppy”.

“What you see in, let’s say the uFC, is very sloppy, mediocre-ish stirking because they’re not strikers,” Chatri Sityodtong said. “A typical UFC fighter is a D-1 college wrestler, 7-0 in the minor leagues and then they do a little bit of of striking then they enter the UFC. At ONE, all these are world champions before they arrive and they’re already multiple [times] world champions at the peak of their career when they arrive.”

Jon Jones hits out at ONE Championship boss, Chatri Sityodtong

And in response to Sityodtong, Jones came to the defense of the UFC, claiming Sityodtong’s outburst won’t do any favors in attracting viewers to ONE Championship. 

“Bro, this doesn’t make anybody want to watch your show any more,” Jon Jones replied. “You just sound like a hater. Winners focus on winning, losers focus on winners. Stay in your lane and do the best you can. Without the UFC there would be no ONE.” 

Do you agree with Jon Jones’ comments aimed at Chatri Sityodtong?

Jon Jones blasts ‘Hater’ Chatri Sityodtong amid rift: ‘Without the UFC there would be no ONE Championship’

Jon Jones blasts 'hater' Chatri Sityodtong no one would watch ONE Championship without the UFCUndisputed UFC heavyweight champion, Jon Jones has hit out at ONE Championship CEO, Chatri Sityodtong overnight on his official Instagram – claiming without the UFC, there would be no ONE Championship for the Singapore native to manage, before labelling him a “hater” amid recent comments about the Dana White-led organization. Jones, a former two-time undisputed […]

Jon Jones blasts 'hater' Chatri Sityodtong no one would watch ONE Championship without the UFC

Undisputed UFC heavyweight champion, Jon Jones has hit out at ONE Championship CEO, Chatri Sityodtong overnight on his official Instagram – claiming without the UFC, there would be no ONE Championship for the Singapore native to manage, before labelling him a “hater” amid recent comments about the Dana White-led organization.

Jones, a former two-time undisputed light heavyweight champion, is slated to headline UFC 295 in November at Madison Square Garden, taking on the returning former two-time heavyweight champion, Stipe Miocic in a heavyweight championship clash.

Sidelined until March of this year, Jones made a stunning three-year hiatus snapping return to combat sports with a spectacular first round submission win over former interim heavyweight champion, Ciryl Gane, submitting the Frenchman with a first round guillotine choke to nab the vacant divisional crown. 

Sharing his thoughts on the talent pool available to him at ONE Championship compared to rival organization, UFC, the above-mentioned, Sityodtong claimed that many strikers under the North American-based promotional banner are more than “sloppy”.

“What you see in, let’s say the uFC, is very sloppy, mediocre-ish stirking because they’re not strikers,” Chatri Sityodtong said. “A typical UFC fighter is a D-1 college wrestler, 7-0 in the minor leagues and then they do a little bit of of striking then they enter the UFC. At ONE, all these are world champions before they arrive and they’re already multiple [times] world champions at the peak of their career when they arrive.”

Jon Jones hits out at ONE Championship boss, Chatri Sityodtong

And in response to Sityodtong, Jones came to the defense of the UFC, claiming Sityodtong’s outburst won’t do any favors in attracting viewers to ONE Championship. 

“Bro, this doesn’t make anybody want to watch your show any more,” Jon Jones replied. “You just sound like a hater. Winners focus on winning, losers focus on winners. Stay in your lane and do the best you can. Without the UFC there would be no ONE.” 

Do you agree with Jon Jones’ comments aimed at Chatri Sityodtong?

Dana White uses ONE Championship production blunder to take another dig at Showtime Boxing President

Dana WhiteDana White just can’t help himself. The UFC CEO has never been shy when it comes to his feelings about Showtime Boxing and Showtime Sports President Stephen Espinoza. Over the last week, the pair have been firing shots at one another, all kickstarted by White who had an almost giddy reaction to a report that […]

Dana White

Dana White just can’t help himself.

The UFC CEO has never been shy when it comes to his feelings about Showtime Boxing and Showtime Sports President Stephen Espinoza. Over the last week, the pair have been firing shots at one another, all kickstarted by White who had an almost giddy reaction to a report that Showtime Boxing would end its nearly 40-year run following the conclusion of the 2024 schedule.

Espinoza didn’t take kindly to the comments and snapped back, taking a dig at White’s perpetual unprofessionalism despite being the CEO of a publicly traded company.

“I’m shocked by the comments,” Espinoza told FightHype.com after a press conference for the Canelo Alvarez vs. Jermell Charlo pay-per-view event. “We’ve always known Dana to be so articulate and intelligent and witty with his comments. It’s so strange of him to lash out in anger. Who would have guessed that he would lash out in anger at somebody. We’ve never seen that before, right?”

He continued, “If that’s the only way he can engage in some sort of dialogue, then more power to him. I hope he can someday elevate his vocabulary and learn how to speak more eloquently and articulately. I think it’s something that might be necessarily helpful if you’re going to be a leader of a publicly traded company.”

Perhaps making Espinoza’s point, Dana White took another dig at the Showtime Sports President courtesy of an assist from rival combat sports promotion ONE Championship.

During the ONE Fight Night 14 broadcast on Friday night, an unidentified individual made his way on camera just as submission specialist Danielle Kelly was set to make her walk to the Circle.

It was a relatively minor production mishap, but White saw it as a golden opportunity to take a jab at both of his competitors. “Espinoza has taken over the Production for One FC,” White wrote on X.

It’s Not the First Time Dana White Has Slammed Showtime Boxing or Stephen Espinoza

It’s far from the first time Dana White has slammed Showtime Boxing and Espinoza ever since the pair teamed up to co-promote Conor McGregor’s boxing match with Floyd ‘Money’ Mayweather in 2017.

“Showtime is f*cking horrible,” White said in August following the Power Slap 4 event. “Those guys suck so bad; you f*cking guys could show up with your f*cking video cameras and do a better job than Showtime. Seriously, it’s the worst production in all of television. F*cking PBS has better f*cking programming than Showtime. It’s horrible. Everybody who works on that f*cking show should be embarrassed” (h/t MMA Mania).

With Showtime Boxing reportedly closing up shop next year, perhaps Dana White will have the opportunity to show Espinoza how it’s done by launching his long-talked-about Zuffa Boxing concept.

Ex-UFC champ Francis Ngannou reveals why he chose PFL over ONE Championship: ‘It was day and night’

Francis NgannouEx-UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou offered some insight into why he chose to sign with the Professional Fighters League over other promotions that were aggressively courting the heavy hitter. After a lengthy and very public contract dispute with the UFC, the promotion opted to part ways with the Cameroonian in January 2023, freeing him to […]

Francis Ngannou

Ex-UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou offered some insight into why he chose to sign with the Professional Fighters League over other promotions that were aggressively courting the heavy hitter.

After a lengthy and very public contract dispute with the UFC, the promotion opted to part ways with the Cameroonian in January 2023, freeing him to seek options elsewhere. For months, fans waited with bated breath as Ngannou met with multiple organizations. Just when it felt like maybe ‘The Predator’ was carrying around some unrealistic expectations, the announcement came that he had signed a ground-breaking deal with the PFL that would secure a big bag for himself and any other fighter that steps inside the Smart Cage with him.

Discussing his decision to sign with the PFL during an appearance on The Joe Rogan Experience, Ngannou admitted to being very impressed with the contract offer he received right away but opted to take his time and field some other offers first.

“A couple days after [my first meeting with the PFL], they made a proposal,” Ngannou said. “When he made the structure of the proposal, I looked at it and thought it was good. You know, everything was being taken into consideration. There’s always going to be ways to negotiate in a contract. But the way they structured it, I was already happy… But we kept that contract, at that time I was like, ‘Why rush into anything, take some time’, no, I didn’t sign” (h/t BJPenn.com).

Francis Ngannou Discusses His Negotiations with ONE Championship

For a time, it appeared that Ngannou would end up with Asia-based promotion ONE Championship, but after a three-hour meeting with the promotion’s CEO, Chatri Sityodtong, the pair agreed to go their separate ways with Sityodtong noting that they weren’t “fully aligned on non-financial matters.

“Then, we got to Chatri,” Ngannou continued. “Chatri reached out, we talked, same thing. A couple of days [go by] and they send their own contract. But, when I was putting the contract next to the PFL one, it was day and night… Yeah, [the PFL’s was better].”

Before Francis Ngannou makes his PFL debut in 2024, he’ll step into the squared circle for a pro boxing bout with reigning WBC heavyweight world champion Tyson Fury on October 28.

Superlek lands unanimous decision win over Muay Thai star Rodtang in brutal superfight – Highlights

Superlek defeats Rodtang in all out war at ONE Championship superfight decision winThai striking sensation, Superlek has landed one of the biggest victories of his professional combat sports career to date, dropping ONE Championship flyweight Muay Thai champion and face of the sport, Rodtang Jitmuangnon in a unanimous decision effort atop a ONE Friday Fights 34 card from the Lumpinee Boxing Stadium. Superlek, the current ONE flyweight […]

Superlek defeats Rodtang in all out war at ONE Championship superfight decision win

Thai striking sensation, Superlek has landed one of the biggest victories of his professional combat sports career to date, dropping ONE Championship flyweight Muay Thai champion and face of the sport, Rodtang Jitmuangnon in a unanimous decision effort atop a ONE Friday Fights 34 card from the Lumpinee Boxing Stadium.

Superlek, the current ONE flyweight kickboxing world champion, entered tonight’s monstrous showdown with compatriot, Rodtang off the back of a stunning nine-fight winning run, fought back from some real adversity in the first frame, dealing with a series of cuts and lacerations on his hairline — turning his bleach blonde hair an unsightly red.

However, midway through the second frame, rallying against Jitmuangon Gym staple, Rodtang, the Thai striker recorded a knockdown on the latter, sending him to the canvas with a counter step-in elbow at the ropes, drawing an official count from the ring official.

And managing to counter well and fight from the ropes throughout the third frame, Superlek would emerge with a unanimous decision win over Rodtang on all three judge’s scorecards, in a memorable superfight for the ages.

Below, catch the highlights from Superlek’s decision win over rival, Rodtang