Asia Set for Mixed Martial Arts

"Revolution" (3)

Martial Combat?

Chatri said MMA was primed to take off in Asia after having become the third most watched sport in the United States, although other sources suggested the figure referred to viewers within the male 18-34 demographic.

"We blew through our three-year financial goals in three months, so there's strong interest in Singapore," he added.

"We are at the beginning of the MMA revolution in Asia."

That "revolution" will take a step forward next year with the launch of 'Martial Combat', a series of MMA events to be broadcast across Asia by ESPN Star Sports (ESS) and staged at Singapore's S$6.59 billion ($4.69 billion) Resorts World Sentosa.

ESS said the first event, scheduled for May 14-15, would feature top fighters from Asia and around the world and would be broadcast in 24 countries around the region.

"When we first created the X Games it was full of very similar questions: 'Is this really a sport? Is it dangerous?'" Ciu told Reuters. The X Games feature sports such as snowboarding, skateboarding and BMX.

Ciu said the event that while MMA would find it tough to replace soccer and cricket as Asia's top sports, there were definite growth opportunities.

"We think that the really exciting opportunity for the sport is not with the 'diehard MMA fans' -- those people will watch it regardless. What we want to do is ... bring the sport to people who enjoy competition, who enjoy the genre of 'fight'.

"The objective is to make this entire event an entertainment show. In the same way as if for a concert or a musical, you leave with a positive experience."