Ritu Phogat aims to combine striking and wrestling against Bi Nguyen as crucial 2021 calendar starts

It was in 2019 that Ritu Phogat stunned everyone with her decision to quit wrestling in favour of mixed martial arts (MMA). Hailing from the renowned Phogat family, who had their popular and inspiring story running in theatres near us in 2016 with the movie Dangal, Ritu was expected to follow in her elder sister Geeta and Babita’s footsteps. But ‘The Indian Tigress’ had other ideas. Geeta and Babita made India proud on the wrestling mats of the Commonwealth Games, the Khabib Nurmagomedov-inspired Ritu wants to do it in an MMA ring. Her journey has been so far so good. In 2019, Ritu defeated Kim Nam-hee in the first round of the atom-weight (52 kg) contest at the One Championship event. In 2020, she won all three bouts. The honeymoon period, if there is any in a sport where fighters spit blood after receiving punches and bruises stay fresh long enough to remind them about the beating they endure, is about to get over for the Indian. Ritu has been named as one of the eight competitors for the ONE Atomweight World Grand Prix which kicks off on 28 May. The winner of the Grand Prix will earn the right to challenge reigning world champion Angela Lee in November this year for the title. Things are going to get very serious in 2021 and Ritu is the least experienced in the group of the eight fighters. Fortunately, she has an invaluable opportunity upcoming to soar her experience and grow her confidence. But for that, she has to fight a ‘Dangal’ of her own. On 15 May, Ritu is scheduled to take on Vietnamese-American Bi ‘Killer Bee’ Nguyen at One: Dangal. “I want to start this new year with a win. I will try my best to live up to the expectations of my fans,” Ritu told Indian media during a virtual interaction from Singapore.

Can undefeated atomweight phenom Ritu Phogat secure her FIFTH successive victory inside the Circle against Bi Nguyen at ONE: DANGAL? 💪 @PhogatRitu #ONEDangal #WeAreONE #ONEChampionship pic.twitter.com/sxbTwVjAMy

— ONE Championship (@ONEChampionship) May 7, 2021

Unlike Ritu, Nguyen will take the ring on Saturday on the back of three consecutive defeats. However, the 31-year-old fighter has a long history of MMA and Muay Thai. An expert at the “art of eight limbs”, Nguyen made her amateur MMA debut in 2014 and turned professional in 2016. Given her experience of martial arts, Nguyen has a strong stand-up game where she looks to wear down her opponents with the continuous hammering of punches and kicks. Ritu, given her long association with wrestling, has a strong grappling game where she prefers taking down her rivals as soon as possible before bringing down finishing punches on them. But this transition from striking to takedown is where the opponent could sniff an opportunity. The lack of sting in striking could allow Nguyen to dictate terms early. But the 27-year-old Indian is not flustered about the possible challenges. Though she reveals very little about her game plan for the upcoming bout, she is confident her wrestling heritage will help her trump Nguyen. “Bi Nguyen is more experienced than me and her standing game is better than mine. But I have confidence in my training,” says the 2016 Commonwealth Wrestling Championship gold medallist. “You will see in the match how wrestling overpowers striking. I will try to take full advantage of my strength that is wrestling.” And if it’s not enough, Ritu will hope her striking, something on which she has worked regularly at Evolve MMA the martial arts academy, withstands the Nguyen test. “In atom-weight, no fighter has an answer to my wrestling but I will like to have a mix of striking and wrestling in the upcoming match,” says Ritu. “The 15th May fight is going to be very exciting because a top-level puncher and a top-level wrestler are going to collide.” Unbeaten in four bouts so far, Ritu will also be defending her perfect record against Nguyen, but that has had no bearing on her psyche. “I don’t take any pressure because I am undefeated. I train and give my 110 percent in the ring. And I want to continue my unbeaten streak,” she added. Mental toughness is another aspect of Ritu which has enhanced since she made the switch to MMA. Her dream to win a world title in MMA and the pursuit of it took her away from home to Singapore. The COVID-19 pandemic then made the distance between family and her much wider. Due to visa restrictions and strict quarantine rules, Ritu hasn’t been able to visit home since February last year. “The last time I visited India was in February last year and after that lockdown was implemented here. I am mentally very strong but the lockdown has made me stronger because I missed so many things, I missed my sister’s wedding, my other sister had a child, so these things have made me stronger mentally,” says Ritu. “Whenever I speak to my Papa on the phone, he gives me a lot of motivation. He always tells me to keep in mind the reason for which I have come here (Singapore). So that’s always in my mind.”

The biggest night of martial arts in India's history goes down THIS SATURDAY at ONE: DANGAL! 🇮🇳 @Verafied @TheOneASB @killerbeemma @PhogatRitu @ayk917m @saintlion #ONEDangal #WeAreONE #ONEChampionship pic.twitter.com/OLZlZ3tEV0

— ONE Championship (@ONEChampionship) May 10, 2021

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The One: Dangal has a special focus on Indian MMA fighters. Apart from Ritu, Indo-Canadian Arjan Bhullar will fight for the belt against One heavyweight world Champion Brandon Vera. India’s Roshan Mainam will take on Canadian-Indian Gurdarshan Mangat. “Everybody has trained well, they are here to win, So I am confident they will give their best. Arjan Singh Bhullar is going to fight for the belt, so the whole of India is hoping he will win the belt and I am also very confident,” added the former wrestler. While Ritu prepares for another punishing MMA bout, India is experiencing the second wave of the deadly coronavirus. “It’s a difficult period but we need to stay strong. This will also pass, don’t lose your heart. Everything will become normal, so we need to stay positive. Stay safe, stay at home,” said Ritu. Amid the pandemic, Ritu only has words of comfort to offer but if she wins her upcoming bout she would be able to offer something to rejoice to her fellow Indians.