Chatri Sityodtong confirms ONE Championship will return to Tokyo in Q3 of 2024

After a beyond-epic ONE 165 card inside the Ariake Arena in Tokyo, Japan, ONE Championship Chairman and CEO Chatri Sityodtong says the promotion will be headed back to the "Land of the Rising Sun" this year. As per the promotion's head honcho, the card will get underway in the third quarter of 2024.

The lifelong martial artist broke the news during a recent chat with the South China Morning Post, saying:

"We have a show booked for Q3 of this year. I think we're going to announce it in the next few weeks. Tickets go on sale in the next few weeks."

"We hit a lot of momentum in Japan in 2019, but then, of course, COVID hit. But we believe we are going to lead the revival of martial arts in Japan."

Chatri Sityodtong did not add whether this impending show in Tokyo will be a numbered event or a Fight Night card. But having signed two of the biggest Japanese martial arts superstars over the past 12 months, he has no doubt the show will be a night that will leave a lasting impression.

Chatri Sityodtong added:

"We've also signed two of the biggest superstars in Takeru [Segawa] and [Masaaki] Noiri. And Japan is a fantastic market, still one of the world's largest economies."

Before ONE 165 this past January, the promotion's last expedition in the martial arts-rich nation saw them host a double-header spectacle, ONE: Century, at the Ryogoku Kokugikan in October 2019.

The promotion's debut outing in Japan, ONE: A New Era, meanwhile, was hosted in the same iconic venue in March of that year.

Watch the full interview here:

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Chatri Sityodtong says ONE 168: Denver has been an instant hit

In the same quarter of the year, ONE Championship will embark on its second on-ground show in the United States, ONE 168: Denver, penciled in for September 6 inside the Ball Arena.

The world's largest martial arts organization's debut spectacle on U.S. soil, ONE Fight Night 10, in May last year, was played to a sold-out crowd at the 1stBANK Center in Denver, Colorado.

And per the ONE Championship chairman, this card has all the makings of succeeding that card headlined by a trilogy showdown between ONE flyweight MMA world champion Demetrious Johnson and Adriano Moraes.

In a separate interview with Sportskeeda MMA's Nick Atkin, Chatri Sityodtong shared:

"We are right now, a little over half sold, and we've spent zero on marketing. We still have four months to go. And I think, based on the way it's trending, we will sell out very soon in the near future."

ONE 168: Denver will air live and for free in American primetime to North American fans with an active Amazon Prime Video subscription. Tickets for the event can be purchased here.