Ritu Phogat quits Wrestling and moves to Mixed Martial Arts

Ritu Phogat, daughter of dangal fame Mahavir Phogat makes a shocking exit from wrestling to start a new career in Mixed Martial Arts (MMA). As of now, there are only a handful of fighters who have made to the known leagues so far only Bharat Khandare showing up in the UFC. The likes of Himanshu Kaushik, Puja Tomar, and Rahul Raju signed with ONE Championship.

However, it could soon change. One of the biggest wrestling stars in the country; Ritu Phogat has officially left the mat and has decided to enter the world of MMA. The Commonwealth Wrestling Championships gold medallist has joined one of the world’s most decorated MMA academies and Asia's best- EVOLVE. Some hours later it was announced that Ritu has been signed by Asia's biggest MMA promotion ONE Championship. She will have to move out from India and relocate to Singapore where the fight team is based.

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Ritu Phogat said that she is excited to move to Singapore and start her new journey in MMA as a member of the EVOLVE Fight Team.

“I am excited to have moved to Singapore to begin my new journey in mixed martial arts as a member of the EVOLVE Fight Team. My managers Birbal Sports introduced me to Evolve and convinced me that this is the future. 

“It is both an honour and a privilege to join ONE Championship, the best and biggest martial arts organization in the world. Wrestling will always be my first love, but I feel that it is time to expand my horizons. I am excited to compete against the best mixed martial artists in the world and to bring glory and pride to my home country. I also look to prove that Indian martial arts are truly world-class. Thank you, ONE Championship, for the opportunity to share my talent on the global stage,” said Ritu Phogat.

Now she joins EVOLVE MMA where she will work regressively with the full fortitude and try to learn new arts of fighting like Muay Thai, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Boxing to complement her wrestling prowess.

Earlier, EVOLVE has produced some of the most famous fighters in the world like former UFC Lightweight champion Rafael dos Anjos, Ben Askren and Shinya Aoki. EVOLVE MMA is owned by Chatri Sityodtong, who is also the owner of Asia’s biggest fighting promotion ONE Championship.

HIGHLIGHTS

• Ritu Phogat quits Wrestling to join MMA. 
• Ritu Phogat is the daughter of Dangal fame Mahavir Phogat. 
• She will move from India to Singapore to learn MMA at EVOLVE.