V. Belfort wants to bring ONE FC to Brazil. Photo: Reproduction/Instagram @vitorbelfort
The Brazilian and former UFC champion, Vitor belfort, seems to be excited since signing a contract with ONE FC, after having more than 20 fights for Ultimate. At 42 years old, the Rio native revealed plans to elevate the name of the 'new house', best known today on the Asian continent. In a recent interview with 'Combate', 'Fenômeno' made plans to hold an event at Maracanã, in addition to projecting possibilities of facing names like Andersol and Wanderlei Silva, Chael Sonnen e Fedor Emelianenko.
See too
“The organization is going to Brazil. One is already opening an office in Brazil and the event will arrive soon. The idea is to solidify the sport more and more in Brazil. Let’s make history again”, said Vitor.
Belfort was one of the names that helped solidify MMA in world culture. The fighter began his career in the 1990s, and, in the 2000s, he publicly assured that mixed martial arts would be a valued and recognized sport. After more than 20 years of career, Vitor was able to follow the growth of the sport, in addition to seeing the growth of the UFC, for whom he worked until last year.
In his career, the 'Phenomenon' had the opportunity to face great names from the past generation, such as Randy Couture, Wanderlei Silva, Dan Hernderson, Rich Franklin, Chuck Liddel and Tito Ortiz. Currently, Belfort also spoke about the possibility of re-editing fights against athletes he faced in the past.
“One guy I would love to fight and everyone wanted to see was Anderson. Who would be the guy for Anderson to fight in the UFC? There's no one for him to fight there. There's just this new generation. Anderson deserved to fight me again. It's a fight I would love to see. Me and Wanderlei, me against the Chael Sonnen, me against Fedor (Emelianenko). There are a lot of cool fights, but for that to happen, the fans have to put pressure on the organizations to make it happen”, declared the veteran.
According to Belfort, the forecast is that ONE FC will begin exploring the Brazilian market at the beginning of 2020. For the fighter, the expectation is that the company will share with other organizations the possibilities of holding major events on Brazilian soil, given that the number of talents and sports enthusiasts is quite significant in the country.
“We are talking about something for the end of the year or beginning of next year. That is the goal. It will be something lasting, something that we can implement. We are going to enter Brazil with strength. We don't just want to start with the sport, we want to generate jobs, tourism, education in the martial art, implement it in communities, help local gyms. ONE aims to help people who already have their social projects, in short, to help new talents emerge”, concluded the athlete.
Vitor signed a contract with ONE in February this year. The Rio native, however, has not yet debuted for the new company. Throughout his career, the Brazilian has fought 41 times, winning 26, being defeated 14, in addition to having one fight without result.
Comments