When ONE Championship says they’re The Home of Martial Arts, it’s not mere exaggeration.
Aside from its dynamic mixed martial arts line up and all-striking superstars in both Muay Thai and kickboxing, the largest martial arts organization on the planet is also home to some of the finest grapplers in the world.
A quick look at ONE’s signed fighters shows that.
From 17-time Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu World Champion Marcus “Buchecha” Almeida to 15-time World Champion Andre Galvao, ONE has been signing the who’s who of the BJJ world, thus starting the grappling revolution and running away with it.
“I think ONE and [its CEO, Chatri Sityodtong,] are doing a really amazing job with that,” Buchecha told the South China Morning Post in an interview.
“ONE Championship is the place to be. It’s making grappling great again.”
Buchecha, for all his brilliance on the mats, hasn’t actually competed in an official submission grappling match in ONE yet. However, he has been running through opponents under mixed martial arts rules, stopping all of his three foes inside the first round thanks to his high-level grappling.
But while ONE has signed some of the most accomplished grapplers, they’ve also focused on acquiring the next generation of submission stars, evident in their recent signings.
From the Ruotolo Brothers, Kade and Tye, to Mikey Musumeci to Danielle Kelly and Jessa Khan, ONE has picked up proteges and phenoms to create the foundation for what’s shaping up to be an exciting division.
“[Submission grappling] is such an amazing sport, and ONE does an amazing job of promoting it for what it is. It’s to get the submission the fastest way you can, and do it in a proper way,” Tye told ONEFC.com.
“Everything, even Chatri’s pep talks before [the events], really instills into every athlete why they’re there. They’re there for the finish. That’s how it needs to be. It’s going to be huge for jiu-jitsu,” Kade added.