Chatri Sityodtong "very proud" of weight and hydration system in ONE Championship

ONE CEO and founder Chatri Sityodtong maintained that he’s very proud of the weight and hydration protocols in place at ONE Championship.

With athlete safety as their ultimate priority, the Singapore-based promotion has put systems in place to make sure each athlete is healthy before they step inside the circle to compete.

Not only do they perform medical tests at weigh-ins, they’ve gone beyond the normal standards of testing to include third-party CAT scans as well.

In a post-fight interview at ONE on Prime Video 4, Chatri Sityodtong was asked if he believed the weight and hydration systems were in fact working, as four major fighters on the card failed to meet those standards.

Chatri Sityodtong responded and said he was very proud of ONE for leading the charge in this area for combat sports:

“If you want to fight at the highest level in the world, and you want to fight in the healthiest system, our medical process, obviously, with our hydration, with our fight week CAT scans, with our neurological exams for athletes, is by far the highest standard of any organization in the world, and I'm very proud of that.”

Catch the full clip at the 5:27 minute mark and onwards:

At ONE on Prime Video 4, four big names failed to meet either hydration or weight standards.

According to the South China Morning Post (SCMP), the names included, former ONE welterweight world champion Kiamrian Abbasov, who was subsequently stripped from his belt for missing weight, ONE bantamweight contenders Bibiano Fernandes and Stephen Loman, and lastly ONE bantamweight Muay Thai contender Jonathan Haggerty.

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Chatri Sityodtong claims their rigid process prevents athletes from fixing the game

Understanding that the medical process can be tedious for its athletes, Chatri Sityodtong maintains that it’s the most dependable system in the martial arts circuit compared to other organizations.

Each fighter at ONE has a three-hour window to pass both weight and hydration tests simultaneously. If they fail to meet the requirements for either one, they have the ability to return and pass the test before the said window is closed.

At the end of the day, there are multiple reasons why these protocols are in place, and one of them is to keep the integrity of the organization in check.

The CEO added:

“So there are some growing pains with our entire medical system, there clearly are, but I mean, I think it's an amazing thing. Fighters need to know they can't game the system. If you look at what's happening in the States, people cutting 25 pounds of water weight and then regaining it back and more 24 hours later. It's terrible for the human body, terrible for your health long term, and for your brain health. Because hydration, water is necessary to hydrate your brain, as it does with the rest of the organs.”

Watch Kiamrian Abbasov at the ONE on Prime Video 4: Weigh-ins & Hydration test below (26:13):