Garry Tonon dreams of fighting in ONE’s first show in the United States

Garry Tonon is excited about the possibility of ONE Championship hosting its first live show in the United States.

The Asian martial arts organization has teased a live event in the country for some time now. With COVID-19 restrictions easing and logistical challenges diminishing, it could be just a matter of time before ONE hits American soil.

In a recent interview with ONE Championship, Tonon talked about how important it is for the organization to be more accessible to the American audience. The No.2-ranked ONE featherweight contender said:

“I think the moment that [ONE] does break through to the American market, and actually host the show here, I think it'll make a big difference in the fan base and the level of respect that they have for the fighters, and the amount that they follow them and all these sorts of things will [increase].”

Count Tonon as one of the first fighters to sign up for ONE’s first event in the U.S. if and when it happens. He’s excited for friends and family to be able to watch him compete in the Circle live. He added:

“If I was able to fight in the US, I think if I fought anywhere in the US, no matter where it is, I think there's a huge number of people who are even just acquaintances of mine that are going to show up to watch that fight and that's just really exciting. To have that level of support behind you, even if normally they'd be watching from a computer screen it's just a different thing in person.”

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Garry Tonon believes ONE Championship fighters are world-class

One reason Garry Tonon believes American audiences will be surprised with ONE Championship is because of the underrated talent competing in the Asian promotion. There are many highly skilled fighters in the promotion who are not particularly well-known in the United States.

Tonon said:

“Like, I mean, time and time again, we've proven that and, man, when Demetrious Johnson came, he's had some really probably some of the toughest fights of his career in ONE, Eddie Alvarez certainly has had some of the toughest fights of his career in ONE. It's very clear that this is no joke as an organization.”

Tonon returns to action at ONE: Lights Out, which will be broadcast live from the Singapore Indoor Stadium on Friday, March 11. He is set to challenge Vietnamese-American superstar Thanh Le for the ONE featherweight world championship.