"Q1, possibly Q2 of next year" - Rich Franklin on ONE's targeted US expansion and Amazon Prime deal

ONE Championship Vice President Rich Franklin has revealed that the promotion’s impending arrival on American soil could come sooner rather than later.

Franklin, who’s also the CEO of ONE Warrior Series, said in an interview with Morning Kombat that ONE Championship could host fight cards in the United States in the first half of 2023.

He added that the promotion’s higher-ups are already looking at potential cities where ONE Championship can hold its events.

ONE Championship’s arrival on US soil is in conjuncture with its multi-year deal with Prime Video. Amazon’s video streaming platform will broadcast 12 live events in US primetime each year of the deal.

On top of the Amazon cards, there are still the usual events that are aired in Asian primetime.

Rich Franklin said:

“So we will be broadcasting the 12 events that we're doing on Amazon Prime in US primetime hours, but we will also be conducting other events for the primetime hours in Asia as well. So this is going to create a situation for ONE Championship where we have a double schedule, but eventually, this is going to lead to us being on the ground in the US probably Q1, possibly Q2 of next year.”

He added:

“Well, what we're doing internally in the company is we're looking at how we're going to conduct the events or where we're going to conduct the events. We have several locations at this point in time where our where our global ruleset is approved. We would look at possibly next year doing several shows on in US territory and broadcasting some of those shows from the Asian market as well.”

Catch the full interview here:

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Rich Franklin expects Rodtang Jitmuangnon to be a breakout star in the US audience

ONE Championship has always prided itself in the electricity that it brings during fight nights. One person who stands out the most in that regard is Thai dynamo Rodtang Jitmuangnon.

Rodtang, who holds the ONE flyweight Muay Thai world title, became a viral star a few years ago when clips of his indomitable chin spread like wildfire in social media.

It’s not only his resilience, however, that is sure to capture US audiences. Rich Franklin said that Rodtang’s no-holds-barred style of fighting is certain to hook American eyes into the promotion.

Rodtang also had a mixed-rules match against MMA legend Demetrious Johnson at ONE X, further solidifying his drawing power in the West.

Discussing the star, Franklin said:

“How could you not love that guy? His fight style, like, immediately US fans started gravitating towards him… I think Rodtang has the potential to be an international star, as well as several other athletes that we have from the roster that Americans will come to know.”