If there is one athlete who put Asia on the map of the international sporting scene, it is boxing superstar Manny Pacquiao.
Pacquiao is the only boxer in history to capture major world titles in eight different weight classes and was long rated as the best pound-for-pound boxer in the world by most sporting news and boxing websites.
However, boxing’s popularity in the Asian region is slowly ebbing due to several factors, including Pacquiao’s imminent exit from the sport and the growing reputation of another form of combat sport like mixed martial arts.
Boxing promoters such as Bob Arum of Top Rank tried to replicate Pacquiao’s magic and rise to stardom with Chinese boxer Zou Shiming, but the 86-year-old American businessman failed to get the desired result.
As the demand for boxing continues to wane in Asia, the sport has found an unlikely ally in ONE Championship, a mixed martial arts organization that was established in Singapore seven years ago.
Already solidified itself as one of the premier mixed martial arts promotions in the world, ONE Championship has set its sights on boxing.
ONE Championship recently announced its partnership with Nakornloung Promotion to co-promote the world title defense of WBC super flyweight champion Srisaket Sor Rungvisai in the main event of ONE: KINGDOM OF HEROES, which is set to take place at the Impact Arena in Bangkok, Thailand on October 6.
