Grappling ace [autotag]Garry Tonon[/autotag] has proved his mastery on the mats. Now he plans to do the same in MMA by capturing the ONE Championship featherweight title.
“The Lion Killer” transitioned to MMA with ONE Championship in 2018 and has looked better with each performance as he’s reeled off five consecutive victories in ONE Championship, three by submission and two by TKO.
Now the 28-year-old New Jersey native says he’s ready for a shot at the ONE featherweight title held by Australia’s former two-division champion [autotag]Martin Nguyen[/autotag] (13-3), and Tonon (5-0) has taken his campaign to to social media to respectfully call for a shot at the belt.
In a video message posted to his 20,000 followers on Twitter, Tonon said, “I’ve been working my ass off my whole life to give you guys some of the most exciting grappling matches and fights you’ve ever seen. And now, I come to you asking for a favor.
“I need you to hit up ONE Championship and Chatri (Sityodtong, ONE Championship CEO), and tell them you want to see Garry Tonon and Martin Nguyen fight for the title. Thanks guys, I really appreciate your support.”
Garry Tonon vs. @MartinNguyenMMA for the strap?!?! Tell @ONEChampionship and @yodchatri that's what you wanna see. Help me get the fight and I promise you to put on a show that you won't want to miss. #titlefight #tononvsnguyen #onechampionship #mma #bjj #martialarts pic.twitter.com/naNecJaemA
— Garry Tonon (@Garry_Tonon) February 4, 2020
Tonon later doubled down on his callout as he posted a second video message, addressing the “The Situ-Asian” himself.
“This next message is for Martin Nguyen himself,” he said. “I respect everything you’ve done in ONE Championship, becoming a champ-champ over there, and I aspire to do the same. I just have a little piece of advice for you. You should probably take the fight now. The longer you wait, the worse it’s gonna get.”
To @MartinNguyenMMA @ONEChampionship @yodchatri #titlefight #ONEChampionship #tononvnguyen #mma #bjj #martialarts #championship pic.twitter.com/QYCxMhMMi0
— Garry Tonon (@Garry_Tonon) February 4, 2020
With Nguyen currently looking for his first title defense of 2020, and with ONE looking to expand their global footprint into the United States, Tonon’s callout could potentially be perfectly timed. Neither man currently has a fight booked and, with ONE’s event in Ho Chi Minh City on March 20, ONE Championship 110, needing a main event, a matchup between Tonon and Australian-Vietnamese champion Nguyen might just prove to be the ideal booking.