Former ONE middleweight titleholder Vitaly Bigdash appears to have severed ties with the renowned Singapore-based ONE promotion.
Bigdash hasn’t participated in the promotion for about a year. His most recent match was in July 2022 at ONE 159. There, Bigdash was defeated by the then-dominant Reinier de Ridder by first-round technical submission with an inverted triangle. This thwarted his dreams of becoming a two-time ONE middleweight champion.
Taking to Instagram, Bigdash conveyed his sentiments regarding ONE Championship. In a video that was uploaded to the internet, the Russian man tore up and threw away a ONE shirt. Bigdash continued by saying, “I think everything is clear here without words.”
Former three-time ONE flyweight titleholder Adriano Moraes also weighed in on the Bigdash saga.
Moraes has remained absent from the ONE Championship scene following his decision loss to Demetrious Johnson at ONE Fight Night 10, which transpired 11 months ago. Despite the inclusion of non-disparagement clauses in contracts, the promotion faces mounting scrutiny from its atheletes.
Moraes echoed a sense of frustration through his comment, seemingly referring to his own prolonged inactivity within the promotion. In a direct reference to ONE Championship’s official profile, he posed a rhetorical question regarding the current state of affairs.
These recent incidents are not the first time that athletes are raising their voice against ONE Championship in 2024.
Earlier this year, Sage Northcutt publicly aired grievances concerning the promotion’s handling of visa-related matters for his coach. The resultant upheaval led to a last-minute rescheduling of Northcutt’s scheduled bout against Shinya Aoki.
Aoki ended up ultimately facing John Lineker instead.
Northcutt shared his version of events on Facebook. In the process, he criticized ONE’s business practices.
Undoubtedly, the year 2024 presents formidable challenges for ONE Championship. Athletes have been speaking against the promotion, which is definitely a hurdle they need to overcome.