ONE Championship returns to the U.S. with shows in Denver, Atlanta

After a groundbreaking debut outing in the United States last year, ONE Championship will return to the region with two more on-ground mega events, slated to get underway in the second half of a massive 2024.

ONE Fight Night 26 will take place on September 6 at the Ball Arena in Denver, Colorado. Meanwhile, ONE Fight Night 28 on November 8 will go down at the State Farm Arena in Atlanta, Georgia.

As always, ONE Fight Night events will continue to broadcast live in American primetime on Prime Video. The organization broke the news on its official site earlier today.

Speaking of the promotion’s hotly-anticipated return to North America, ONE Championship Chairman and CEO Chatri Sityodtong stressed the importance of making the U.S. market a more permanent fixture in their yearly list of spectacles.

Sityodtong stated:

“We’re thrilled to return to the U.S. to showcase the greatest World Champion martial arts in the country’s best cities and sports arenas. America remains a high-priority market for us as we continue our global expansion, and we can’t wait to get back on-ground to entertain our passionate fanbase in the region with quarterly U.S. events in September 2024 and beyond.”

Per Marc Raimondi from ESPN, both state athletic commissions have approved ONE Championship’s global mixed martial arts rule set, which axes weight cuts and puts fighters’ safety as a top priority via multiple hydration and weigh-in systems based on walking weight during fight week.

On top of that, the rule set incorporates knees to the head of grounded athletes and scores bouts based on an entirety, with aggression, near-knockouts or submission, and overall damage a top priority, which in turn, guarantees more exciting fights on the global stage of ONE Championship.

Having lit up the martial arts sphere with its weekly offering inside the Lumpinee Boxing Stadium last year via ONE Friday Fights, showcasing the very best of Muay Thai, and taking submission grappling to the next level in 2023, ONE Championship is keen to make another statement in 2024.

With a return to Japan and a debut in Qatar, scheduled for January 28 and March 1, respectively, and the pair of on-ground outings in the U.S. this year, the new year is certainly shaping to be another memorable period for the world’s largest martial arts organization.

Details on the fight card and ticket on-sale will be announced at a later date. North American fans can catch ONE Fight Night 26 and Fight Night 28 from the comfort of their own homes, live and for free, with an active Prime Video subscription.

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ONE Championship’s successful on-ground U.S. debut: ONE Fight Night 10

ONE Championship executed its debut on U.S. soil with a stacked card that beyond lived up to the hype from the sold-out 1stBank Center in Denver, Colorado, in May last year.

ONE Fight Night 10, an 11-fight card, played host to the organization’s best talents on the roster from the very best of MMA, Muay Thai, and submission grappling.

Early in the night, Jackie Buntan returned and blessed the watching world with a first-round TKO of Diandra Martin. Aung La N Sang, Sage Northcutt, and Zebaztian Kadestam impressed similarly, wrapping up their contest with highlight-reel finishes.

Thailand’s Rodtang Jitmuangnon and Stamp Fairtex, two of the best strikers on the planet, produced a pair of high-octane performances in their American debut inside the ONE Championship Circle, too.

Rodtang smashed his way to a second-round KO of Edgar Tabares while Stamp folded Alyse Anderson with a mean body kick to punch her ticket to a shot at the ONE Championship atomweight MMA crown that is now in her possession.

Meanwhile, submission grappling superstar and reigning ONE flyweight submission grappling world champion Mikey Musumeci proved why he’s the very best in the realm with a rear-naked choke finish of Osamah Almarwai.

At the top of the card, MMA GOAT and ONE Championship’s flyweight king Demetrious Johnson left with his hand raised and 26 pounds of gold intact as he outpowered Adriano Moraes throughout five thrilling rounds.