After showcasing 4 events in just under a year, ONE Fighting Championship is now, arguably, one of the top MMA promotions in the world, and is the premiere Mixed Martial Arts organization in Asia. That’s right ladies and gentleman – The Singapore-based promotion earned these credentials after a mere 365 days into the MMA scene.
Victor Cui, the CEO and Founder of ONE FC, had a vision; He wanted people to know the impact that Mixed Martial Arts would have in Asia, and he did that by showcasing some of the region’s elite fighters under one roof. One could just wonder what the promotion would be able to replicate in the coming years, given all the successes its had thus far.
Along with the likes of Shinya Aoki and Tim Sylvia, the organization caught everybody’s attention when they announced the signing of former DREAM title-holder Bibiano Fernandes. It was no secret that Fernandes had snubbed the UFC to pen a deal with Asia’s no.1 MMA promotion, but Victor Cui insisted that the final decision was all down to the Brazilian, and what was offered on the table:
“I can’t speak for Bibiano. But what I can say is about what we do with our fighters and what we offer to our fighters, ” Cui said. “When a fighter joins ONE FC, we’re committed to them and to their careers and to their long-term development and I know all of these guys push, and I listen to them, I talk to them, I understand what their priorities are, and understand the pressures.”
Victor Cui also stated that the fan-base in Asia was one of the reasons why Bibiano Fernandes decided to sign with ONE Fighting Championship:
“From our perspectives with Bibiano, you know, he’s got a huge fan-base out here in Asia already. He’s a superstar, you know,” Victor Cui continued. “The Filipino fans who love MMA have been following him, and can’t wait for him to come out here and he(Bibiano) was happy to continue to grow his fan-base out here in Asia with ONE FC.”
Furthermore, the CEO of ONE FC was also quick to point out that match-ups with the quality of Arlovski vs. Sylvia 4, intrigues fans because of its history and bad-blood:
“The sport in Asia, where MMA is – we not only want to put together interesting match-ups, but we want match-ups that excite the fans, and excite their imaginations both in the quality of the competition, about the storyline and the history behind it,” Cui said. “These guys (Arlovski and Sylvia) have a strong personal history, there’s no love lost between them, and that’s an interesting story to tell Asian fans, who’ve never had the chance to see their past fights or their background or know about that. I’m always looking, you know, keeping my eye-out for these kind of interesting match-ups that I think fans want to see, and I want to see, that would be great on ONE FC and that’s what we put together.”
And although the promotion continues to receive offers of showcasing its events in other countries, Victor Cui said that his primary focus will be on Asia:
“Our focus right now is Asia. I mean that’s my core expertise, and we’ve got the largest television footprint out here to 500 million viewers in 28 countries so our strength is in this region right now and where we’re building so we will continue to focus on Asia.”
For the entire interview, be sure to check the latest episode of MMASucka radio that can be found here. Victor Cui, the CEO and Founder of ONE Fighting Championship, continues to talk about how he feels the promotion is ranked worldwide, soccer kicks to the head of an opponent, the future plans for ONE FC, and more. Also on the episode is Invicta FC’s President, Shannon Knapp, and Strikeforce commentator Mauro Ranallo.
_______________________________________________________________________________________
Follow @ThineshJohnMMA on Twitter and Keep up with the latest MMA news on Twitter and Facebook
