ONE Championship News

Tom Taylor - November 4, 2018

ONE Championship heavyweight kingpin Brandon Vera is once again set to defend his title. The Filipino-American striking specialist will do so on November 23 in Manila, The Philippines, where he will battle Cage Warriors heavyweight champion Mauro “The Hammer” Cerilli. Given the skill of his upcoming opponent, Brandon Vera knows that victory is not a certainty. What he is certain of, however, is that the bout will be thrilling, and that it could end at any second. For that reason, he urges his fans to save their bathroom breaks for after the fight.

BJPENN.COM Staff - November 2, 2018

ONE Women’s Atomweight World Champion “Unstoppable” Angela Lee believes that having the hometown advantage will play a huge factor when she tries to become the first two-division women’s world champion in history this November. Lee is scheduled to challenge ONE Women’s Strawweight World Champion “The Panda” Xiong Jing Nan for the strawweight strap in the main event of ONE: HEART OF THE LION at the Singapore Indoor Stadium on 9 November.

BJPENN.COM Staff - November 1, 2018

Both Eddie Alvarez and Demetrious Johnson, former UFC champions, announced that they have joined ONE Championship within two weeks of each other. The news obviously ran up many headlines. The Johnson for Ben Askren trade in particular was the biggest acquisition in history for the Asia-based promotion. Alvarez, 34, has won world championships in the biggest mixed martial arts promotions in the world, and has made it clear that he’s intent on capturing a third major title.

Tom Taylor - November 1, 2018

Last night, costumed kids all over North America hit the streets on an indomitable quest for candy. This morning, these sugar-addled children are testing the very limits of their parents’ and teachers’ resolve, throwing temper tantrums and coating classroom floors in chocolate bar wrappers. Of course, children aren’t the only people who celebrate Halloween. While the kids were out trolling for sweets, many adults donned costumes of their own to celebrate the occasion. That includes some of the biggest names in our fine sport.

Tom Taylor - October 31, 2018

After defending the UFC flyweight title a record-breaking 11-straight times, Demetrious Johnson absolutely deserved an immediate rematch with Henry Cejudo, who ended his title reign with a split decision victory at UFC 227 in August. Instead of pursuing this rematch, however, Demetrious Johnson and his team negotiated a move to Singapore’s ONE Championship.

BJPENN.COM Staff - October 31, 2018

Team Lakay’s Kevin “The Silencer” Belingon (19-5) sees no problem if reigning ONE Bantamweight World Champion Bibiano “The Flash” Fernandes (22-3) takes the action to the mat in their highly-anticipated rematch on 9 November. The two men are slated to lock horns in the co-main event of ONE: HEART OF THE LION, which takes place at the Singapore Indoor Stadium.

Tom Taylor - October 30, 2018

Former ONE Championship welterweight titleholder Ben Askren is now headed to the UFC — though the promotion has not officially announced his arrival just yet. Askren’s long-awaited migration to the Octagon was made possible by a history-making trade between ONE and the UFC that saw the UFC cough up its former flyweight champ Demetrious Johnson in exchange for the former ONE welterweight king.

Tom Taylor - October 30, 2018

After a lengthy and history-making stint in the UFC, former UFC flyweight champion and pound-for-pound great Demetrious Johnson is headed to ONE Championship. Johnson is expected to debut with the Singapore-based martial arts powerhouse in early 2019. Despite his massive accomplishments in the UFC, however, he does not expect an immediate title shot against ONE flyweight champion Geje Eustaquio. Instead, he’s expecting to fight another top ONE flyweight such as Kairat Akhmetov or Danny Kingad.

Tom Taylor - October 29, 2018

Former UFC flyweight champion Demetrious Johnson is now a ONE Championship athlete. That means that he can look forward to MMA bouts with top ONE Championship flyweights such as Geje Eustaquio, Adriano Moraes, Kairat Akhmetov and Danny Kingad, and perhaps even scraps with top ONE bantamweights down the road. Of course, that is not where Demetrious Johnson’s options as a ONE Championship athlete end.

BJPENN.COM Staff - October 29, 2018

ONE Championship’s Singapore events always seem to produce something special. It could be because Singapore is where the promotion started on its journey to becoming one of the world’s largest martial arts organizations back in 2011, or perhaps it’s the always enthusiastic Singaporean crowd that spur the athletes on to reach new heights.

Tom Taylor - October 29, 2018

These days, it seems like trash talk is part of the buildup to almost every major UFC fight. Pre-fight press conferences, media conference calls and interviews are increasingly filled with virulent mudslinging, while incidents like Conor McGregor‘s infamous bus rampage and the UFC 229 post-fight brawl seem to be making headlines with greater frequency. For fighters who aren’t fond of this kind of drama, this can be a little problematic.

Tom Taylor - October 28, 2018

Former UFC flyweight champion Demetrious Johnson is now a ONE Championship fighter. That’s thanks to a historic and unprecedented trade between ONE and the UFC, which saw Johnson shipped to the Singapore-based promotion, and former ONE welterweight champ Ben Askren sent stateside to the UFC. Ever since news of this trade was announced, Ben Askren has engaged in verbal warfare with many of the UFC’s top welterweights. And while ONE Championship encourages its fighters to steer clear of this kind of trash talking, one ONE Championship star has done his part to lock down a fight with the former UFC champ Demetrious Johnson: former ONE flyweight champ Kairat Akhmetov.