Opinion | One Championship’s Angela Lee is bringing martial arts back home to Asia – and they say it’s about time

Angela Lee versus Xiong Jingnan may not be the main event on Sunday’s stacked One Championship: A New Era card, but it certainly feels like it should be. And it also feels like One CEO and founder Chatri Sityodtong knows the bout between the two Asian female champions is key to his company’s mission of reclaiming martials arts for Asia from the West. “I am so excited, I actually love Angela Lee and I love Jingnan,” the Thai-Japanese Chatri told the South China Morning Post. “Both of them are such sweethearts outside the cage. “But inside they are absolutely the best female martial artists on the planet. Just absolute warriors. It’s a tough one. I like them both. They are two warriors with their own strengths. May the best female warrior win.” “I think the fight of the night is probably going to go to Angela versus Jingnan,” he added. “So much is at stake. Two world champions facing off at a higher weight class. It’s gonna be so exciting.” It is fitting that Sunday’s show takes place in Japan – it feels like Asian MMA’s crowning glory, with a host of superstars coming to Asia for an event built on the back of former heroes. The press conference at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel, Tokyo was packed with fighters from all over the world – not just One Championship and Japanese domestic promotions, but also the UFC, the American company which has dominated the scene of MMA since its rise to mainstream prominence over the past decade. It was an indication of how far the organisation has come in the three short years since Lee won her atomweight title, becoming at 19 the sport’s youngest-ever world champion at the same time. In Lee and Xiong the One organisation is also showcasing its greatest strengths, and selling points – fighters who resonate through the Asian diaspora. Japan’s Shinya Aoki is headlining the event against One lightweight champion Eduard Folayang – a nod of respect to the country and local spectators, while Lee and Jingnan will probably be of more interest to global audiences. “Japan has always been a historic place in terms of martial arts, whether it’s been MMA, kick-boxing or karate. I’m so happy,” Chatri said. “But also on a personal level, I’m half Japanese. My mother was in the audience at the press conference so I have to be a good boy!” Self-made multimillionaire and Harvard MBA Chatri waxed lyrical about One’s mission to promote “values, heroes, stories” instead of bad blood as a way to attract viewers. He feels the West has tainted martial arts. “If you take a story like Eduard Folayang, born on the bottom rung of society, illiterate parents, nine brothers and sisters, five who passed away, he became a world champion, fought through poverty, adversity, tragedy. This can inspire anybody in the Philippines, whether you’re a street kid, a CEO, a nurse, an engineer, a doctor, you can take lessons from Folayang,” Chatri said. “That’s the thing about One Championship. We are unleashing real life superheroes who give the world hope, dreams, strength and inspiration. It’s a whole different mission. Every other organisation in the world that we compete gainst, their job and their mission is to sell fights. We are building heroes for the whole world to celebrate.” Key to Chatri’s battle is the 22-year-old Lee, who aims to make history as a two-weight champion when she takes on strawweight titlist Xiong. The two women shook hands and there were no scuffles at the face off of a press conference that also featured the debuting Eddie Alvarez – the former UFC star represented a major coup for One when he signed late last year along with Demetrious Johnson, who also debuts on Sunday. And who can forget the antics Conor McGregor unleashed on Alvarez in the build-up to their big UFC lightweight title fight at Madison Square Garden in November 2016. Chatri has previously said McGregor will never have a place in One Championship – a bold statement, given the Irishman’s box office bankability. “You know, Conor’s going through a difficult time personally,” Chatri said when asked about McGregor’s recent shock retirement from MMA. The 30-year-old is also reportedly the subject of a sexual assault accusation. “And so I just wish him well. We’re all human, we make mistakes.” Reeling off a list of sponsors that would make any big company blush, Chatri clearly has plans to make money other ways than through pay-per-view buys sold on the back of insults. “So many of the top global superstars have already made inbound requests to One Championship. You’ll be shocked at how many names want to come here. This is the very beginning. Mark my words,” he said. UFC legend Vitor Belfort, One’s latest star signing, is in town and so is his fellow Brazilian Rafael Dos Anjos. “Nobody knows how big it is, man,” Chatri said to Belfort when retaking his seat next to the former UFC light heavyweight champion, who had appeared shocked after seeing some of the financial numbers thrown around by the One Championship chief. “It’s not just a job for us,” Chatri said, though. “It’s a passion to bring back Japanese martial arts to the greatest glories again so that all of Japan can celebrate it’s greatest cultural treasure.”

.css-1mniedq{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;}Queen of Asian mixed martial arts takes centre stage as One Championship goes global Stars of MMA flock to Tokyo for blockbuster event with all eyes on two Asian female champions

Queen of Asian mixed martial arts takes centre stage as One Championship goes global

Stars of MMA flock to Tokyo for blockbuster event with all eyes on two Asian female champions