INDIAN-ORIGIN CANDADIAN MIXED MARTIAL ARTIST Arjan Singh Bhullar has signed for ONE Fighting Championship; a major recruitment for the promotion. Arjan announced his move on social media.
Bhullar, a former amateur wrestler who won a gold medal for Canada in 2010 Commonwealth Games in New Delhi, transitioned to MMA in the early 2010s. He put together a 6 fight win streak in Canadian local promotions before he was signed by the Ultimate Fighting Championship.
Still undefeated, Arjan debuted for UFC on 9th September 2017, earning a unanimous decision victory over Luis Henrique. In his next fight, he suffered a second round submission defeat after dominating the fight until that point.
However, he made an emphatic comeback with a victory over Marcelo Golm on October 27th. He followed that up with another unanimous decision win over fellow up-and-coming heavyweight Juan Adams on 4th of May this year.
With a 9-1 overall record (3-1 in UFC, 2 fight win streak), Arjan Singh Bhullar looked set to ascend the ladder and land a ranked opponent soon. He was not shy about his ambitions, speaking about them openly in multiple exclusive interviews with TFG. He also spoke about his dream to popularise MMA in India and lead the way for Indian fighters who aspire to compete at a global level.
Paying homage to his heritage, Arjan wore the Sikh turban during his last three walkouts, becoming the first ever UFC fighter to do so.
ONE's acquisition of Arjan, who was getting offers from multiple MMA promotions, is extra significant because it fits all of the above.
ONE have recently signed multiple UFC fighters including former Bantamweight champion Dimitrius Johnson, former Lightweight champ Eddie Alvarez and young talent Sage Northcutt. While those signings were aimed at winning more fans in the USA, Arjan's arrival is expected to boost ONE's popularity in Canada as well as India.
ONE have been focusing heavily on the Indian market recently. The ONE Warrior Series 6 event in Singapore featured 3 Indian fighters vying for a ONE contract, where Strawweight Manthan Rane won a unanimous decision victory on his MMA debut.
Moreover, Somesh Kamra, co-founder of Superhuman Gym, revealed in an exclusive interview with TFG that ONE is looking to host an event in India soon.
The stars seem to be aligning here, for ONE to make their debut on Indian soil, and for heavyweight attraction Arjan Singh Bhullar to play a major role in it, furthering his own dream of being an ambassador for the sport in this country.