ONE Championship CEO Chatri Sityodtong has taken a shot at Bellator by comparing their respective success.
In recent years, ONE Championship and Bellator have widely been viewed as two of the biggest promotions in MMA. Of course, the UFC leads the way by quite some distance, but Bellator and ONE certainly have great products in their own right.
ONE tends to have the upper hand in the Asian market and that’s been the case for a while. In equal measure, though, Bellator have made significant strides forward thanks to their relationship with Rizin.
One of the biggest positives for ONE Championship lately has been their association with Prime Video. When discussing a recent event that took place on their platform, Chatri Sityodtong opted to comment on Bellator MMA after the interviewer brought them up.
“I mean, look at the viewership numbers, look at the social media metrics, look at organic video views, anything. Bellator is like 5% that of ONE, okay? Even competition wise, our champions would steamroll Bellator guys. The only co-promotion I’m interested in is UFC, champion vs champion.”
The rise of ONE Championship
It seems unlikely that we’ll see ONE Championship take part in a crossover event anytime soon. It’d be great if they could strike a deal with the UFC but for as long as we can remember, Dana White hasn’t been particularly interested in such a move.
An alliance – or possibly even rivalry – with Bellator could do wonders for both promotions. Alas, it feels as if that isn’t going to be on the cards.
What product do you prefer watching: Bellator or ONE Championship? Do you think either will be able to rise to UFC’s level in the next decade or so? Let us know your thoughts on this and more in the comments, BJPENN Nation!