Chatri Sityodtong

Mixed martial arts promotion ONE Championship, the largest global sports media property in Asian history, is introducing a global super league called ONE Super Series. The new league is an invitation for all the major disciplines of stand-up arts.

ONE Super Series will officially commence on April 20, 2018 at “ONE: Heroes of Honor” at the SM Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City, Metro Manila, Philippines. During a conference call, ONE Championship CEO Chatri Sityodtong talked about the new promotion’s decision to add a new league.

“If you think about the spectrum of all martial arts, MMA is a tiny part of all martial arts,” Sityodtong explained. “It’s just one form of martial arts if you think about it. By definition, this makes us the largest martial arts organization in the world.”

ONE Championship will be making some big announcements in the next couple of days, according to the CEO. He said, “You’ve already seen some signings. Those are already some of the world’s greatest strikers.”

“The cool thing about this format is they can compete in the ring under international kickboxing rules, or they can compete in the cage with hybrid rules that give a little bit more flexibility, and obviously with 4oz gloves,” Sityodtong said of ONE Super Series. “So this is again, a real big initiative that for us is game-changing.”

The fight card of “ONE: Heroes of Honor” has yet to be announced. According to Sityodtong, ONE Championship is currently in negotiations with many fighters.

“It’s kind of funny, after we put the press release out and the names of Giorgio Petrosyan and Yodsanklai Fairtex and Sam-A Gaiyanghadao, and Nong-O Gaiyanghadao, and all Muay Thai legends came out,” Sityodtong said. “Literally, our inboxes and our phones have seen a massive influx from all the world’s greatest strikers.”

Sityodtong himself is a veteran martial artist with a background in Muay Thai and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. He is one of the only four conservators of Sityodtong Muay Thai in the world who were appointed by the late Kru Yodtong Senanan.

Here is a short interview with Sityodtong during the press conference for “ONE: Legends of the World” in January 2018: