7 Reasons Why ONE: CENTURY Will Be The Biggest Martial Arts Event Ever
ONE: CENTURY will be the biggest event in the history of martial arts.
On Sunday, 13 October, 44 athletes from all over the world will convene in the Ryogoku Kokugikan in Tokyo, Japan for 22 bouts that will last throughout the day and offer fans a feast of combat like they have never seen before.
With little more than a month until the big day, begin the countdown by finding out why this spectacular showcase will be such a groundbreaking occasion.
#1 One Event Is Not Enough
Let’s get the obvious out of the way first – there are so many brilliant bouts set to take place at the Ryogoku Kokugikan, a single bout card cannot contain them all.
To accommodate them all, the world’s largest martial arts organization will do what no other has done before and promote two full-scale World Championship events on the same day.
ONE: CENTURY Part I will kick off at 9am local time – which will be prime time on Saturday night in America – before ONE: CENTURY Part II arrives at 5pm in Tokyo for an entire evening of additional action.
#2 The Biggest Rematch In Women’s Martial Arts
There is no more anticipated bout among female athletes in any discipline than the second meeting of “Unstoppable” Angela Lee and “The Panda” Xiong Jing Nan.
The last time these elite competitors met, they put on one of the bouts of the year that swung one way and then the other before Xiong got a dramatic fifth-round TKO. With that finish, she retained her ONE Women’s Strawweight World Title and consigned her Singaporean rival to her first defeat as a pro.
This time around, the Chinese hero will move down a division to attempt to claim the ONE Women’s Atomweight World Title, too, and make history as the first female two-division World Champion on the global stage.
Don’t expect Lee to let her do that easily, though. She was inches away from beating “The Panda” in March, and she will be fired up to hang on to the hardware she has held for so long in the main event of ONE: CENTURY Part I.
#3 The Bout To Decide ONE’s Baddest Man
It does not get any more epic than this on the global stage.
Two kings from the divisions that boast the biggest, strongest, and most powerful competitors will go to war as ONE Heavyweight World Champion Brandon “The Truth” Vera challenges Aung La “The Burmese Python” N Sang for his ONE Light Heavyweight World Title.
Both men respect each other, but that will not stop them from going all-out for a huge win in the headline attraction of ONE: CENTURY Part II.
Their records in The Home Of Martial Arts also say this should be one for the ages. All four of Vera’s match-ups have ended with a spectacular, first-round knockout. In the other corner, Aung La N Sang has earned stoppages in eight of his 10 wins, and he is also responsible for two bouts of the year.
#4 The First Tetralogy Bout In ONE History
Bibiano “The Flash” Fernandes vs. Kevin “The Silencer” Belingon is the bantamweight division’s greatest rivalry, and it is about to become the most epic in ONE history.
These old foes have already met three times, and they were supposed to settle the score once and for all in March after they had split wins in World Title bouts in 2016 and 2018.
However, an unexpectedly anticlimactic ending due to an inadvertent foul from the Filipino was no way to conclude a series between two outstanding athletes like this. For that reason, they will meet in an unprecedented fourth ONE Bantamweight World Title match on 13 October in the evening portion of the show in Tokyo.
Both men have the finishing ability to end this one early, but their rematch showed they are also capable of bringing fireworks for five rounds.
#5 Three World Grand Prix Championship Finals
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6SwPXCymKtc
For the past several months, many of the most talented athletes on the ONE roster have battled it out to progress in three World Grands Prix across eight events.
In Japan, the flyweight, lightweight, and ONE Super Series featherweight tournaments will all conclude on the same night, and three men will emerge with their hands raised, as well as the gold, from a trio of stacked brackets.
Five countries across three continents will be represented in the finals as the USA’s Demetrious “Mighty Mouse” Johnson faces the Philippines’ Danny “The King” Kingad, and America’s Eddie “The Underground King” Alvarez meets Saygid “Dagi” Guseyn Arslanaliev of Turkey in Part I.
When the bouts begin again later that day, the biggest prize in kickboxing history will be on the line. It will be Italy vs. France as Giorgio “The Doctor” Petrosyan and Samy “AK47” Sana face off for $US1 million.
#6 Return Of The ‘Iron Man’
Between the ‘regular’ World Title bouts and World Grand Prix Championship finals, there are seven battles for the gold on the bill across the entire day, and the latest to be signed could be the best of the lot.
ONE: CENTURY Part II will see the return of Rodtang “The Iron Man” Jitmuangnon, who will defend his ONE Flyweight Muay Thai World Title for the first time against ONE debutant Walter Goncalves.
Every one of the Thai hero’s bouts in The Home Of Martial Arts so far has offered edge-of-your-seat thrills, and his first five-rounder was his best yet.
Now, with the chance to go to war against a three-time Muay Thai World Champion, you can expect another classic from the 22-year-old.
#7 28 World Champions
The last time ONE came to Tokyo, the bill was bursting at the seams with 22 athletes who have become World Champions.
This time, that number has grown to a barely-believable 28 across a full day of contests, including some former titleholders the world’s largest martial arts organization.
One of the big draws for the home fans will be former ONE Lightweight World Champion Shinya “Tobikan Judan” Aoki, who will battle former ONE Featherweight World Champion Honorio “The Rock” Banario in the co-main event of ONE: CENTURY Part II.
ONE: CENTURY is the biggest World Championship martial arts event in history with 28 World Champions featured across various martial arts. No organization in history has ever promoted two full-scale World Championship events on the same day.
The Home Of Martial Arts will break new ground as it brings multiple World Title bouts, a trio of World Grand Prix Championship Finals, and several World Champion versus World Champion matches to the famous Ryogoku Kokugikan in Tokyo, Japan on 13 October.
