Chinmoy Lad finds out why the Legend Fighting Championship mixed martial arts tournaments are getting big in the East

When it comes to the growth of mixed martial arts (MMA) fans in Asia, the numbers don’t lie. A modest but eager 1,000 spectators attended the first Legend Fighting Championship in Hong Kong in early 2010. But just short of two years later, the sixth Legend MMA tournament in Macau was broadcast in 10 countries (in both English and Mandarin) to the homes of more than 600 million people. Held in various venues in Macau and Hong Kong, the Legend FC series is solid proof that this is just the beginning of MMA as a sport in Asia.

But for most MMA fans, Legend isn’t the first brand that comes to mind. The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), which debuted in the US in 1993, showcases fighters of varying martial arts disciplines – including boxing, Brazilian jiu-jitsu and muay thai. Such fighting championships gave birth to MMA, which meant that fighters learned several disciplines before stepping into the ring. It is said the original father of MMA was our very own Bruce Lee, who mixed several disciplines of martial arts in his unique form called jeet kune do, which was inspired in part by the traditional form of wing chun.

After initial setbacks, UFC exploded in the 2000s with sports magazines like Sports Illustrated giving coverage by splattering its top stars on the front cover and mainstream channels like ESPN catching on. In 2006, UFC surpassed boxing in pay-per-view revenue.

Riding on the same principles of UFC as a sport rather than a spectacle gave rise to the Legend Fighting Championship, which showcases the best fighters in the Asia-Pacific region and allows their MMA fighters to compete beyond national tournaments. While Legend still has a long way to go to catch up to the popularity of the UFC, Legend FC founders Michael Haskamp and Chris Pollak are turning their crosshairs to China, where a long history and tradition in the martial arts makes the Chinese an obvious and eager demographic.

Pollak proudly tells us that combat sports were the fifth most popular sport on television in China last year by hours broadcast, which puts it ahead of table tennis, volleyball and golf. Pollak and Haskamp say we can expect to see a future Legend FC in China, which would bring MMA live – in a physical sense – to its biggest core audience in Asia.

Michael Haskamp can easily understand the popularity of combat sports, whether in Asia or beyond. “Fighting as a sport – particularly for men – is just magnetic,” Haskamp says. “Men love to watch fighting. You don’t have to be a fight fan to appreciate the amount of athleticism and pure guts and skill that goes into fight sports.”

Despite all of our strong man talk, ladies needn’t shy away – MMA is far from exclusive to men. “Some of our most enthusiastic and vocal fans are women,” says Pollak, who tells us there’s a growing interest in MMA among the female population. Competitions like White Collar MMA from City Fight Club, along with the trend of combat-themed fitness programmes incorporated into daily routines at regular gyms are increasing participation in the sport among both men and women. The more you participate and engage in MMA, the more you appreciate just how competitive and challenging the sport really is.

In targeting Mainland audiences, Haskamp and Pollak have had their own challenges to face. Broadcast sensitivity and censorship are obvious issues – but they’ve overcome them successfully. When Yao Honggang became the first Chinese fighter to win an international MMA tournament in Legend 5, the event results received more than 40 million views on the popular Chinese online community QQ.com.

Every time a Chinese fighter steps into the ring, the anticipation builds. Haskamp vividly describes what he witnessed during Yao’s fight in the Legend 5 tournament. “In the last 30 seconds, I looked around and saw every Chinese person in the audience on their feet. They knew he had won it. They wanted it to end − to see his hand raised.”

With three of China’s best MMA fighters competing for two titles, we might just see crowds of Chinese spectators up on their feet yet again. “It’s very possible for two Chinese to win two international Championship belts,” says Pollak, barely hiding his excitement.

Haskamp and Pollak photo credit: Michal Garcia

Legend 7 will happen at the Grand Hyatt Macau on February 11
Tickets: $680-$1280, cityofdreamsmacau.com