Gianni Subba wants to create Indonesia’s first world champion at SOMA Fight Club Bali

Gianni Subba's main mission at SOMA Fight Club Bali is to discover and develop martial arts talents across Indonesia.

The lifelong martial artist, who co-founded the gym alongside Mike Ikilei and Adam McAsey, hopes to also create Indonesia’s first ONE world champion at the gym, which turns four months old at the start of 2022.

Gianni Subba told ONE Championship in an interview:

“Being on the world stage of martial arts like ONE Championship is a big opportunity for the gym, but more than anything, it is an opportunity for us to help athletes in Indonesia reach their potential.

“Obviously, the greatest goal for us is to have a local-grown talent to reach the pinnacle of the sport within a World Championship, but it is going to take time. We are not going to say we will do it in a year or two years. We are going to take some time because we have the ability.”

Apart from his role as co-founder, Gianni Subba is also responsible for planning out class schedules, private training and helping fighters through their camps at an amateur or professional level.

After all, Gianni Subba knows what it takes to reach the top level of the sport, having turned professional in ONE at 19-years-old.

Becoming a well-rounded MMA fighter will take time. Gianni Subba knows. But with the likes of Ikilei and himself at the Bali-based gym, Gianni Subba feels fighters, especially Indonesian talents, are in the right place to transform themselves into athletes competing in the world’s largest martial arts organization.

“We have worked with World Champions, we have worked with guys that are high level, and we know what it takes to get there. If this is about creating a world champion, we will find our recipe. I think we have the staff and personnel to do it, but it will take some time. I’m confident in our ability to do that.”

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Gianni Subba’s mission kicks off at ONE: Winter Warriors II

SOMA Fight Club Bali will have one athlete competing at ONE: Winter Warriors II premiering this Friday, December 17. Their athlete Paul Lumihi takes on Jhanlo Sangiao in a bantamweight matchup.

Despite only having less than two months to work with the Indonesian fighter, Gianni Subba admits he has already seen some improvements in the Indonesian MMA veteran’s arsenal.

“Paul came to us about six weeks ago. He’s been training with us for six to seven weeks. I’ve seen that he is more confident in himself, more confident in his training, in his cardio, in his skills and I see him firing a lot more [attacks] in the gym.

“As seen in his previous bouts, Paul often starts well, but he starts to lose focus, and that cost him some fights that could have [resulted in] victories. So, the biggest thing for us is to put him in a position where he is focused, and he’s [most likely going to be] locked in for 15 minutes against a dangerous opponent in Jhanlo.”