ONE Championship has found a new home as Asia's top mixed martial arts promotion is heading to Cignal.
The cable network begins the new partnership with the broadcast ONE: No Surrender, the outfit's first event since the global COVID-19 pandemic and emanating from Bangkok, live on Friday on One Sports and One Sports+ at 8:30 p.m.
The multiyear deal makes Cignal the new broadcast partner of ONE, whose MMA cards used to be shown on ABS-CBN Sports & Action, which like its mother network failed to get a franchise from Congress.
The partnership was announced just days after Cignal, in partnership with Smart, said it has signed a multiyear contract for the broadcast rights of NBA games in the Philippines.
The card will see Rodtang Jitmuangnon defend his ONE Flyweight Muay Thai World Championship against Petchdam Petchyindee Academy in the main event.
Fil-Kiwi fighter Mark Abelardo will also be part of the event, facing Brazilian foe Fabricio Andrade in a 67kg catchweight bout.
Encore telecast of ONE: No Surrender will also be shown on TV5 at 11 p.m. on Saturday, as well as in One Sports on 8 a.m. on Saturday and 9 p.m. on August 3.
"Fight Sports has always been a strong content offering in Cignal. When the opportunity for a partnership with ONE Championship presented itself this year, we knew it was something we could not pass up," said Sienna Olaso, Cignal TV's vice president of channels and content.
"It started out as a one-off broadcast of ONE’s 100th event in October 2019, and because of the event’s success on our platform, we knew that a partnership like this was something that would definitely excite our Cignal subscribers
"This partnership promises viewers an MMA experience like no other. Filipino MMA fans and sports fans in general will have access to a rich MMA experience, as we deliver ONE Championship live events, ancillary programs, and canned content in high definition every week."
Chatri Sityodtong, ONE Championship's chairman and CEO, added: "TV5 is the nationwide leader in digital innovation. Together, we will bring new content offerings to our fans, beginning with ONE: No Surrender, live from Bangkok."
ONE Championship followed the lead of NBA as both now call Cignal their new homes in Philippine television.
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