Advertisement

Exclusive | ONE Championship 165 in Qatar will have five title fights as CEO Chatri Sityodtong confirms return of numbered events

  • Chairman and CEO confirms historic martial arts event in Qatar, with titles on the line across ‘all disciplines’
  • No official date is set for ONE 165, but it is likely to be held in Doha in November or December

Reading Time:2 minutes
Why you can trust SCMP
ONE Championship chairman Chatri Sityodtong at the ONE Fight Night 6 press conference in Bangkok, Thailand. Photos: ONE Championship

ONE Championship chairman and CEO Chatri Sityodtong has confirmed the return of numbered events, starting with ONE 165 in Qatar.

Advertisement

Chatri revealed the news in a simple statement posted to Facebook, though no date was given for the event, which is expected to be held in the capital Doha in either November or December.

He had mentioned a “big event in the Middle East in Q4” in a wide-ranging interview with the Post on Wednesday.

The card is set to become one of the most stacked in the Singapore-based martial arts organisation’s 11-year history, however.

Chatri told the Post via text message on Sunday there will be five title fights across all of ONE’s four disciplines – mixed martial arts, Muay Thai, kickboxing, and submission grappling.

LIVE interview with Chatri Sityodtong + latest ONE Championship news | Post Fight Podcast

One of those could see the two-weight MMA champion Anatoly Malykhin bid for a historic third title and challenge middleweight king Reinier de Ridder, whom he took the light heavyweight belt from in Manila last December – when the promotion held a double bill including ONE 164, its most recent numbered event, in Asian prime time.

Advertisement
Advertisement