India’s Mixed Martial Artist (MMA) Ritu Phogat could possibly get a world title shot in 2021, according to ONE Championship CEO and Chairman Chatri Sityondtong. The Indian Tigress is currently 2-0 in the promotion but has not fought since the unanimous decision win over Chiao Chen Wu in February this year. With no ONE Championship matches in sight, the former wrestler has been bidding her time in Singapore training at the Evolve MMA gym. However, she is likely to return to the octagon starting October.
“Ritu plans to be a lot more active this year. She will be playing her first match in October this year and possibly another in November and December. That would set her up well if she continues to win, and she could be up for a world title shot in mid- or late- 2021, Sityodtong told ESPN. The current weight champion in women’s strawweight category is Jingan Xiong (14-2) who held the title in January 2018.
Phogat has clearly been the centre of everything at ONE Championship in the recent month who is trying to build up her profile. And it comes as no shocker given her potential and background she comes from. Earlier, UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov’s manager had said that with the right push and team she has the talent to become a world champion. “Ritu is developing but I know who she is. She’s very tough but she’s still early in her career. I think she’s a world-class athlete,” Abdelaziz said of Ritu, a former silver medallist in the U-23 Wrestling World Championships.
Abdelaziz, who is the CEO of Dominance MMA manages some of the best fighters in the world including interim lightweight UFC champion Justin Gaethje, Welterweight champion Kamaru Usman and former bantamweight and flyweight champion Henry Cejudo. He said, “I think if she gets the right team behind her, the right coaches and makes the right moves, she can be a world champion. I really do”.