MMA World Champion Arjan Bhullar ready to take on the 'tough guys'

By Anuj Mishra
New Delhi [India], June 4 : Arjan 'Singh' Bhullar has been flourishing with confidence following his feat of becoming the first Indian-origin fighter to win the ONE Heavyweight World title.

The Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) World Champion just wants to carry forward the momentum and has openly challenged the likes of Anthony Ogogo and Bobby Lashley to pick a one on one fight with him in freestyle wrestling.

In an interaction with ANI, Bhullar opened up on his expectations after winning the Heavyweight title, his strategy which he employed to take down Brandon "The Truth" Vera during the fight and revealed how he deals with aspects of giving mental health a priority over any other thing.

"More winning and more gold in Pro Wrestling (on what he wants to do next). I called out because I want to prove that whether it is Olympic wrestling and professional wrestling or MMA it doesn't matter. I can pick a fight with anyone and I can win," Bhullar told ANI.

"I want to lock horns with them in free-style wrestling, like WWE Bobby Lashley, Anthony Ogogo who is Olympic medallist in boxing from Great Britain and anybody else whoever the tough guys are I don't mind," he added.

"Grateful" and "relieved" were the two words that Bhullar was able to recollect when asked how he felt after becoming the first Indian-origin fighter to win the title.

This could well be understood by the fact that Bhullar badly wanted to win the fight even after repeatedly admitting that his opponent was dangerous.

And for this, Bhullar -- who started professional MMA fighting in 2014 -- had carefully planned to knock out Brandon Vera.

Bhullar cautiously approached Vera in the first round, looking to string together combinations to set up a takedown, and then unleashed an array of punches in the second essay.

"I am very happy, very grateful, felt relieved and excited at the same time. I was relaxed ahead of the fight, in my mind I was just planning what I had trained to do during the fight. I wasn't overthinking about the encounter," said Bhullar.

"I knew his style and also that he could be dangerous with his kicks and all. Life has been amazing after the fight, so many new opportunities are opening up, lots of fan support, it's been amazing," he added.

When not in the ring you can find Bhullar spending time with his friends and family, but the MMA fighter doesn't give away practicing and goes to the gym daily to be in the perfect frame of mind.

"You just have to know yourself, what makes you happy, what keeps you happy, and control what you can. For example, every day I am gonna train, and go to the gym to be a little bit better as tomorrow is a new day. Things will get better, you just have to keep fighting," explained Bhullar while answering how he managed his mental health amid the pandemic.

You will often see him carrying a mace while he is going for a fight or while he is posing for a picture after winning the title. Bhullar attributes it to Lord Hanuman and legendary wrestler Dara Singh who had presented the mace to Bhullar.

"I got it from Dara Singh when I was wrestling as a trophy. Right before the year he passed away, I was the wrestling champion and so when I carry the mace I feel it's like passing off a torch from him and I carry it with great honour and I also want to represent my wrestling roots," Bhullar signed off.