Coronavirus forces One Championship to put Singapore MMA show behind closed doors

‘King of the Jungle’ will still be broadcast live on February 28 but tickets for Singapore Indoor Stadium will be refunded

‘My team and I had the option to cancel the event altogether, but we chose not to,’ says CEO Chatri Sityodtong

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Stamp Fairtex pummels Puja Tomar in Bangkok. She will headline the ‘King of the Jungle’ card in Singapore. Photos: One Championship

Published: 10:54am, 18 Feb 2020Updated: 2:54pm, 25 Feb 2020

One Championship has decided to press ahead with its “King of the Jungle” card in Singapore on February 28, but the event will play out behind closed doors because of the outbreak of the deadly coronavirus.

Chatri Sityodtong, CEO of the Asian MMA promotion, said all tickets bought for show at the 12,000-capacity Singapore Indoor Stadium would be refunded, after deciding against cancelling it altogether. The event, headlined by Stamp Fairtex defending her atomweight kick-boxing title against Janet Todd, will still be broadcast live on television and digital platforms.

The Singapore government had already raised the DORSCON (Disease Outbreak Response System Condition) alert level to orange last week, with the Ministry of Health urging organisers to cancel or defer non-essential events.

“My team and I had the option to cancel the event altogether, but we chose not to cancel it,” Sityodtong said in a statement.

Demetrious Johnson will now get his One flyweight title shot in Jakarta, instead of Chongqing.

“Let us unite as a country and let us show strength as a continent to conquer this coronavirus,” he added. “We will get through these tough times together. Majulah Singapura! Jiayou China!”