With stateside aspirations looming giant, ONE Championship might have to begin clarifying some issues concerning its weight-cutting course of.
The Singapore-based promotion is ready to launch its first occasion as a part of a newly signed broadcasting deal with Amazon Prime. Going down tomorrow morning native time (Aug. 26, 2022) dwell from Kallang, Singapore, ONE on Prime Video 1 kicks off a brand new stretch of occasions to be placed on by the promotion. At the moment (Thurs., Aug. 25, 2022), the 20 fighters set to compete weighed in … however not with out difficulty.
9 athletes both missed weight, didn’t weigh in, failed hydration, or have been unable to offer hydration throughout ONE’s official weigh-ins which have been streamed live on its YouTube channel. Halfway via the 48-minute course of, the stream reduce out and displayed a promotional picture earlier than coming again roughly 4 minutes earlier than ending. Full weigh-in outcomes will be seen beneath (h/t Combat Press):
135lbs.: (C)Adriano Moraes ()* vs. Demetrious Johnson (134.75)
Muay Thai – 145lbs.: (C)Nong-O Gaiyanghadao (144.5) vs. Liam Harrison (145)
Muay Thai – 135lbs.: Rodtang Jitmuangnon ()*** vs. Savvas Michael (134.25)
265lbs.: Marcus “Buchecha” Almeida (257.75) vs. Kirill Grishenko ()
265lbs.: Amir Aliakbari (258.75) vs. Mauro Cerilli (259.5)
Muay Thai – 135lbs.: Superlek Kiatmoo9 (135) vs. Walter Goncalves ()*
Muay Thai – 135lbs.: Panpayak Jitmuangnon (135.5)** vs. Sherzod Kabutov ()***
Muay Thai – 127lbs.: Diandra Martin (127.5) vs. Amber Kitchen (127.5)
115lbs.: Itsuki Hirata ()* vs. Lin Heqin ()*
185lbs.: Zebaztian Kadestam ()* vs. Iuri Lapicus (185.75)**
* – Fighter failed hydration; had till 3 a.m. native time to make weight and hydration
** – Fighter handed hydration, however missed weight; had till 3 a.m. native time to make weight and hydration
*** – Fighter unable to offer hydration pattern; had till 3 a.m. native time to make weight and hydration
UPDATE: MMA Fighting has confirmed that Rodtang is now out of his bout with Michael attributable to an sickness.
In case there’s anybody on the market who nonetheless believes that ONE fighters don’t do weight chopping…don’t take it from me, take it from an precise fighter weight chopping in a sauna swimsuit. pic.twitter.com/HzlA43rVlw
— Jonathan of Kowloon & Brickfields (@GlobeSvcs) August 25, 2022
In an effort to eradicate weight chopping and supply extra fighter security, ONE implements hydration testing and has weight limits 10 kilos greater than what they historically are. For instance, Flyweight — 125 kilos — is 135 kilos in ONE. Per ONE’s official website, “ONE leads the worldwide martial arts business by banning weight-cutting by way of dehydration.”
The athletes are subjected to 3 hydration exams all through struggle week with the final approaching struggle evening in the event that they failed one of many prior two exams. “If an athlete fails the hydration check on occasion day, she or he will not be permitted to compete,” the web site reads. “Ought to an athlete cross the hydration check, however weigh in above the restrictions of the contracted weight class, then the bout might happen at a catchweight — so long as the athlete is inside 105 % of his or her opponent’s official weight, and if the opponent agrees to the bout. Moreover, a share of the athlete’s purse can be given to the opponent attributable to failure to make the contracted weight. Put up-bout weight might not exceed 5 % over the burden class or catchweight restrict.”
The ceremonial weigh-ins for ONE on Prime Video 1 go down later tonight and it seems unlikely that something will change with the occasion’s proceedings. Each units of weigh-ins are the one bits of data made public concerning the method. An analogous incidence got here forward of ONE’s latest massive present, ONE X, in March 2022 the place eight fighters failed their hydration exams however continued on to compete.
Talking to Forbes final week, ONE Founder, Chatri Sityodtong, revealed his intentions of debuting the promotion in America in 2023 with a number of occasions. Due to the huge variations between worldwide and home regulatory our bodies, and sure promotions like ONE, it will likely be fascinating to see how a lot stays the identical and the way a lot would change if ONE does obtain that objective.
ONE on Prime Video 1 can be anticipated to be the primary occasion that the promotion can be publicly drug testing its athletes utilizing Worldwide Doping Assessments & Administration — a subsidiary of Drug-Free Sport Worldwide that may “independently deal with all testing for unlawful substances,” stories South China Morning Post. Sityodtong acknowledged in 2019 that ONE had begun implementing World Anti-Doping Company (WADA) commonplace testing, a declare that was shortly denied by WADA (h/t The Body Lock).
