"It's a shame that fans miss out on epic battles" - John Wayne Parr hopes ONE-UFC crossover title fights happen in the future

John Wayne Parr is a fighter by profession but a fight fan first and foremost. He also has a gripe with how champions are crowned in the current landscape.

The legendary kickboxer said in an interview with From The Stands MMA that fight fans are missing out on the best possible matches since promotions don’t want to hold crossover events.

He pointed out that there’s a market for such events. Parr added that it would be a great opportunity for champions from ONE Championship to take on their counterparts from UFC and Bellator for title unification matches.

Parr said it’s sad that UFC isn’t willing to have its champions fight other titleholders from other promotions.

The Australian said:

“It’s a shame that the UFC doesn’t do a crossover event because a ONE champion vs. UFC [champion] or Bellator [champion] would be so amazing. Imagine being a double champion in both organizations. It really puts the champion on a pedestal.”

Parr also took a slight swipe at UFC President Dana White for preventing his fighters from exploring other options:

“I guess Dana has so much pride. Well, why would he risk his reputation? So I can understand where’s coming from. But it’s a shame that the fans are missing out on epic battles.”

Watch the full interview with John Wayne Parr below:

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John Wayne Parr thankful for ONE Championship’s push for Muay Thai

John Wayne Parr was already a professional fighter when Muay Thai was almost exclusive to its native land of Thailand. The sport is huge in its home country, but it was merely a sporting footnote outside the nation.

Then ONE Championship came along and introduced the greater world to the electrifying dance of limbs and fists.

'The Gunslinger' said it was important that Muay Thai fighters get the respect they deserved:

“When you see the Thais in Thailand and you see how hard they fight, you’ll see how exciting the fights are. It's such a shame we don’t get the credibility that I think a lot of the fighters deserve. When you go somewhere like Thailand or even Australia you’re fighting world-class guys but no one gets the exposure to the world stage. Whereas an organization like ONE, then all of a sudden you’re worldwide and it’s so crazy.”

Parr added that he experienced how ONE Championship pushed his name to a worldwide audience when he recalled the day after he lost to Nieky Holzken in April 2021:

“The next day, I look at my phone and I had 3000 DMs waiting for me. ‘Oh congratulations on the fight,’ I’ve never been so inundated even though I lost by knockout. But the fans are so overwhelming and so supportive.”