"There's no easy lunch" - Chatri Sityodtong says ONE's bantamweight division across multiple sports is the best in the world
While ONE Championship hosts some of the best martial artists across multiple sports disciplines, there's no doubt that its 145-division is indeed special.
Appearing in a virtual press conference for ONE Friday Fights 81 last week, Chatri Sityodtong talked about the insane amount of talent in the promotion's bantamweight ranks in Muay Thai, kickboxing, and mixed martial arts.
The ONE Chairman and CEO said:
"That being said, the bantamweight division in ONE is killer. Actually, every division is a killer. The 70-kilogram division in kickboxing, or Muay Thai has a bunch of killers. The best in the world. You look at the bantamweight [division] of Muay Thai, it's the best in the world. The grappling in ONE Championship, MMA is the best in the world. Every discipline. My team does a very good job of recruiting and signing the very best athletes on the planet. So there's no easy lunch."
ONE's bantamweight Muay Thai top 5 is indeed filled with a murderer's row of world-class talent. Sitting at the top is the new bantamweight Muay Thai king Superlek Kiatmoo9, who's considered one of the greatest strikers on the planet.
British superstar Jonathan Haggerty currently rules over the bantamweight kickboxing ranks. Meanwhile, the phenomenal Fabricio Andrade is the bantamweight MMA world champion.
Watch Chatri Sityodtong's interview in its entirety:
Chatri Sityodtong confirms Prajanchai vs Jonathan Di Bella II is in the works
Apart from the long list of intriguing match-up possibilities in the stacked bantamweight division, there's also a lot of activity in the strawweight ranks, particularly with its two biggest stars.
Prajanchai PK Saenchai rose to two-sport supremacy when he beat Jonathan Di Bella for the strawweight kickboxing crown at ONE Friday Fights 68 last June.
Given the close nature of that first meeting, Chatri Sityodtong believes it's only fitting for these two to run it back.
"We definitely want to do Prajanchai and Di Bella II. It may happen in America. It may happen somewhere else. Qatar is also a potential [venue]. Japan is also a potential [venue]," he said in the same interview.
The ONE head honcho added:
"I'm most interested in a Prajanchai versus Di Bella rematch. It was a very close fight, and I think both athletes are world champions in their own right or the best of the best on the planet. I think fans really want to see that fight."