NHB Podcast Interview: Victor Cui of ONE FC

Eddie Goldman, "The Godfather of MMA Journalism", interviewed ONE FC's Owner and CEO Victor Cui in this latest edition of the No Holds Barred show.  Listen to this very informative podcast here.  I am very honored to be the Asia correspondent for No Holds Barred, such a well-respected and upstanding information source, and Eddie Goldman, "The Conscious of Combat Sports".  A huge thank you for Victor in mentioning me and commending my efforts to grow the sport of MMA in Asia.

Here is the introduction to this interview:

On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman speaks with Victor Cui, the CEO and owner of the ONE Fighting Championship.

Based in Singapore, ONE FC ran their first mixed martial arts card on September 3, 2011. They have led the establishment of the ONE Asia Partnership Network, which is a mutually exclusive partnership of mixed martial arts organizations and gyms across Asia and the Pacific which will co-promote events and share fighters. So far, ONE FC has partnered with Dream in Japan, URCC in the Philippines, Cage Fighting Championship in Australia, ROAD Fighting Championship in Korea, DARE Fightsports in Thailand, Team Lakay Wushu in the Philippines, Tiger Muay Thai and MMA in Thailand, Tigers Gym in India, Evolve Mixed Martial Arts in Singapore, Legacy Gym in Thailand, Tough MMA in Taiwan, Synergy Jiu-Jitsu in Indonesia, Juggernaut FC in Singapore, Fightworks Asia in Singapore, PAK MMA in Pakistan, Team Force in Korea, MuayFit in Malaysia, and Leverage MMA in Malaysia.



With numerous other partnerships and television deals in the works, ONE FC has already announced three events for 2012: February 11, 2012, in Jakarta, Indonesia, at the Kelapa Gading Sports Mall; March 31, 2012, in Singapore, Singapore, at the Singapore Indoor Stadium; and April 27, 2012, in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, at the Stadium Negara.

Clearly, ONE FC has emerged as the largest mixed martial arts event in Asia.

We spoke by Skype with Victor Cui on Wednesday about the development of ONE FC and their plans. He explained that "the way to exponentially grow, and quickly, a sport is cooperatively." While he obviously is building his own MMA organization and this network, he stressed that MMA organizations should "work together." He said, "The goal here is the greater good."

Our lengthy discussion included topics such as their plans for televising their events throughout Asia, the issues of governance of MMA and fighter safety, the importance of the martial arts traditions in Asia and seeing MMA as part of that, the potential for Asia to become a mixed martial arts capital of the world, boxing and MMA, their attitude to other organizations such as M-1 Global and UFC, and much more.

We also open with a commentary on the widespread analysis of people like Professor Kishore Mahbubani of Singapore that we are now in the "Asian Century", and the future of the combat sports.

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