More One C'ship events put to the test

Similar to last month's Inside The Matrix event, fans will also be admitted at two One Championship fights next month.
Similar to last month's Inside The Matrix event, fans will also be admitted at two One Championship fights next month. ST PHOTO: DESMOND WEE

Mixed martial arts (MMA) organisation One Championship yesterday announced it would stage two live events at the Singapore Indoor Stadium next month.

Big Bang will be held Friday next week while Collision Course will take place on Dec 18. Both will feature up to 250 paid spectators in attendance.

The announcement comes on the back of One's successful Inside The Matrix event on Oct 30, the first live sport event in Singapore to feature spectators since the coronavirus pandemic. Tickets cost $148 each, with 250 fans present.

These shows are part of a pilot project the Government hopes will help identify a model that can be widely implemented so more large-scale events can resume safely in Singapore.

For Inside the Matrix, spectators were required to undergo an Antigen Rapid Test (ART) at one of 10 designated clinics on the same day, and produce a valid negative ART certificate before they were allowed into the venue.

ARTs return results in under half an hour, compared to the gold-standard polymerase chain reaction test which takes a few hours. Both procedures are similar in nature.

One said on Monday spectators must take the ART and produce a valid negative certificate for both upcoming events. Tickets are priced at $188 each and available at ticketmaster.sg.

Big Bang is headlined by a One light heavyweight kickboxing world championship bout where Roman Kryklia of Ukraine defends his title against Dutch-Turkish rival Murat Aygun.

Five other bouts are scheduled on the card, including an MMA clash between flyweight title contenders Kairat Akhmetov of Kazakhstan and Danny Kingad of the Philippines.

Collision Course also features six bouts and is headlined by a title defence as well.

Thailand's Nong-O Gaiyanghadao will defend his One bantamweight muay thai world title against compatriot Rodlek PK.Saenchai Muaythaigym.

Singaporean fighter Amir Khan also returns in a lightweight MMA clash with South Korea's Park Dae-sung, while another lightweight fight will see former champion Marat Gafurov of Russia take on undefeated American Lowen Tynanes.

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A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on November 24, 2020, with the headline More One C'ship events put to the test. Subscribe