5 reasons why ONE Championship stands out from every other fight promotion

True to their famous slogan, ONE Championship prides themselves as being the home of martial arts.

Although mixed martial arts was the organization’s sole focus in its early years, other disciplines have since been pushed to the same level as that of MMA.

Not only does ONE Championship have world champions in MMA, it has also introduced world titles in Muay Thai and kickboxing. While submission grappling is just starting to combust in ONE, it’s only a matter of time before a world championship for the sport eventually gets created. In fact, Mikey Musumeci hinted at a yet unconfirmed submission grappling world title bout later this year.

With ONE Championship soon making its debut on Amazon Prime Video this August 26 with ONE on Prime Video 1: Moraes vs. Johnson II, there’s a whole host of reasons why every fan in North America should tune in, and why ONE stands out from the norm that we’ve grown accustomed to.

Here are five reasons why ONE Championship is in a class of its own.

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#5. It’s easily accessible and readily available on a global streaming platform

The global audience’s viewing habits have greatly expanded in the past decade or so. While cable and television continue to enjoy a strong presence, the blazing rise of video streaming, particularly services such as Netflix and Amazon Prime Video, have unapologetically taken the public’s attention.

As the everyday consumer is presented with a plethora of live sports and entertainment options to stream, ONE Championship quickly took advantage of this revolutionary platform.

Yes, ONE Championship is still broadcast on traditional linear television throughout the world, but it has spent a massive amount of resources to ensure it commands a huge presence online, and that is only strengthened by its latest broadcast deal with Prime Video.

Amazon Prime Video subscribers, around 200 million in number according to the streaming giant, will be in for a treat once the promotion starts broadcasting exclusive cards on the platform starting this month.

ONE on Prime Video 1: Moraes vs. Johnson II on August 26, set to air at US primetime, will be the first of many cards that will be broadcast on Prime Video this year alone.

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#4. It’s a truly international martial arts organization

ONE Championship is a global brand in every sense of the word.

Not only is it being broadcast in more than 150 countries, but the promotion also has fighters from more than 80 nations who are freely allowed to represent and bring their flags into the circle.

Fighters who choose not to bring a large flag to the circle are also greatly encouraged to wear the colors of their countries during fights. That’s in stark contrast to other North American promotions, which have recently banned such representation.

ONE Championship’s reigning world champions are also an international bunch. Across four continents, there are 16 countries that can boast that they are the home nations of the organization’s top fighters.

Fans won’t have a hard time choosing and rooting for their favorite athletes since they can quickly choose among the promotion’s myriad of martial arts talents who come from their home country.

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#3. Production value

While some promotions are content with lights and entrance songs, ONE Championship takes things to the next level.

Grandiose is an understatement to describe how ONE Championship does its live cards.

Many have described the organization’s production value as a rock concert and they aren’t wrong. A couple of screens are usually set up near the audience area during shows to give the live viewers a better angle of the fights.

Then there’s the stage itself. A Jumbotron that stretches all the way to the upper box seats is a traditional piece of pageantry at ONE events, and that is just the backdrop.

Smoke and pyrotechnics are always present during live shows that not only elevate the aura of the fighters, but also hype up the crowd in more ways than one.

Each fighter also has their own entrance music and video montage that plays when they make their walk to the circle. ONE women’s atomweight world champion Angela Lee comes out to “Unstoppable” by Sia, for example, and it’s become her trademark tune.

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#2. ONE Championship uses the global rule set in MMA

ONE Championship has taken great pride in its elevated finishing rate among its athletes and that is thanks in no small part to their Global Martial Arts Rule Set.

While North American promotions use the Unified Rules of MMA, ONE Championship’s use of the Global Martial Arts Rule Set allows its fighters to utilize a wider variety of strikes, most prominently, the use of grounded knees.

The topic of grounded knees is a controversial one among other MMA organizations. Many hardcore fans and purists are in favor of allowing grounded knees to the head because prohibiting them causes a major stall in the action.

A grounded fighter is “any fighter who has more than just the soles of their feet on the ground.” What this means is that any part of a fighter’s body can touch the ground and take away the need to defend against a knee strike to the head. This is obviously not natural in a real fight situation, and takes away from the action.

Furthermore, ONE Championship opted to forego the controversial 10-point must system. Instead, it judges fights as a whole based on key criteria such as near-finish, damage inflicted, and so on. The complete rule set can be found on the official ONE website.

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#1. All martial arts are being pushed at the same pace

ONE Championship takes pride in being the home of martial arts, and the organization doesn’t just say it, but does it in the most spectacular of ways.

MMA, Muay Thai, kickboxing, and submission grappling are given the same importance in the greater scheme of things. It has even, at one point, featured world championship boxing at one of its events.

The organization has taken great pride in the diversity of its martial arts offering, and it has gone full throttle in signing the very best of each discipline. Names like Nong-O Gaiyanghadao and Rodtang Jitmuangnon ply the Muay Thai ranks, the legendary Giorgio Petrosyan and the iconic Nieky Holzken star in kickboxing, and Brazilian jiu-jitsu legend Andre Galvao sits alongside the rising Ruotolo brothers in submission grappling. These are just some examples.

The promotion is also proud of staging mixed-rules bouts, the first of which was a titanic clash between Muay Thai phenom Rodtang and MMA legend Demetrious Johnson. This push for such hybrid matches has also trickled down to its fighters, with the athletes themselves pushing for their own dream matches.

ONE Championship also has a penchant for hosting World Grand Prix tournaments, which fans absolutely love.