Buchecha says ONE Championship’s submission grappling scene is ‘changing people’s lives’
- BJJ legend Marcus Almeida praises the Asian martial arts promotion for promoting lucrative matches
- ‘I think it’s a change of the game, the next step for grappling,’ says heavyweight MMA contender
Marcus “Buchecha” Almeida has given ONE Championship’s aggressive push into submission grappling his seal of approval.
The Asian martial arts promotion, which has historically focused on MMA, Muay Thai and kick-boxing bouts, has recently promoted several high-profile submission grappling matches and has plans for several more soon.
Buchecha, who is now focused on MMA but is considered one of the best submission grapplers in history, likes what he is seeing from Singapore-based ONE.
“I think ONE and [CEO Chatri Sityodtong] are doing a really amazing job with that,” the 31-year-old Brazilian told the Post.
“ONE Championship is the place to be. It’s making grappling great again.”
Buchecha (2-0) is currently one of the top contenders in ONE Championship’s heavyweight MMA division, and will look to take another big step toward a title shot when he battles fan favourite Senegalese wrestler “Reug Reug” Oumar Kane at ONE: Reloaded on April 22 in Singapore.
But after watching his fellow Brazilian Andre Galvao grapple two-division MMA champion Reinier de Ridder at the blockbuster ONE X card last month, he is considering returning to his submission grappling roots in the ONE Circle.