X marks the spot for ONE’s Chatri

Chatri Sityodtong addresses a press conference. —ONE CHAMPIONSHIP

Usually quick on his feet, Chatri Sityodtong took a good 10 seconds before answering what he could’ve done differently as the head honcho of ONE Championship.

“You know, as its chief operating officer and its leader, I’ve made a lot of mistakes,” he told ​the Inquirer.

“We started with mixed martial arts, then made our way to muay thai, and then eventually jiujitsu. But I wish I would’ve done that earlier than later.

“Also, I would’ve gotten around the world faster. We’ve spent 10 years in Asia. Maybe I should’ve been more aggressive and taken the company to Europe, North America for events,” he ​added.

But the missteps don’t matter to Sityodtong anymore, not with ONE celebrating its 10th anniversary.

“I don’t want to be ungrateful,” he said. “Keep in mind, I’m truly blessed with good luck in this journey.”

Sityodtong said much of the strides the Asian promotion made thus far is largely because of a tightly-knit and ever-reliable team he has in his corner.

“All those mistakes we’ve made both as individuals as teammates—those are just part of the journey. And a part of life,” he said.

ONE is set to deliver yet another ambitious event on Saturday at Singapore Indoor Stadium in what is seen as a resilient showing for sports during the pandemic era.

Its 56th card overall, ONE X, will feature 20 bouts that will be divided into three legs. Five world titles will be at stake, among them Angela Lee’s atomweight title, Adriano Moraes’ bantamweight strap and Superbon Singha Mawynn’s featherweight kickboxing crown.

Five Filipinos are competing in the milestone.

ONE X is shaping up as a true celebration of martial arts and that is keeping Sityodtong, a martial artist himself, from dwelling in the past.

“ONE is like my baby, you know. So I’m equally proud of my journey in martial arts, [as well as my] journey as the founder and CEO of ONE.”