New Delhi, Dec 12: Puja Tomar, who is the only Indian Mixed Martial Artist (MMA) to have won a fight at the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), has expressed happiness at her sport being included at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games of 2026. Tomar is hopeful that this development will help in the sport getting Government support and recognition.
In an exclusive chat with UNI, the straw-weight division fighter said: “I was so happy and excited when I hear that, (of MMA to feature in the 2026 Asian Games) because I know that MMA will start getting recognition in India now.”
The former national Wushu champion appeared to be very positive about India’s potential in MMA
“I can guarantee, that if we start getting the proper support then MMA will be the biggest thing in the Indian sports sector and we will be among the top five countries worldwide in the next 10 years.”
Puja, whose next UFC fight and opponent will be announced soon, spoke about her preparations:
“My next fight and opponent is expected to be announced soon. My next opponent is likely to be from an East Asian country. My preparations are going well. I’m training in Some Fight Club, Bali, under the guidance of Coach Mike, who is one of the best in the business.”
Puja has a ‘one win one loss’ record at the UFC. She lost her second match against Irish fighter Shauna Bannon, who made her to tap out through an arm bar in the second round. The ace striker said that she is working on further developing her grappling skills
“Yes, it was a bad day, and I’m working on my grappling to improve my skills for the upcoming fight.”
Puja, who idolises UFC Hall of Famer Ronda Rousey, hopes that India will soon develop quality infrastructure for training PRO MMA athletes so that more Indians compete at the UFC.
“It is sad that we do not have very good infrastructure to train PRO MMA athletes in India, but I hope that soon we will have infrastructure and more athletes from India in UFC. Also, I would love to invite all the corporates and Government to join hands with athletes to create an MMA ecosystem in the country, because MMA is going to be the next big thing in Indian sports industry.”
The 32-year-old hoped MMA will feature at the 2030 Commonwealth Games that will be hosted in India. (UNI)
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