The Czech organizer Oktagon wants to achieve in Cologne what even the MMA industry leader UFC was unable to do. 20,000 spectators are expected to experience an MMA spectacle and celebrate their local heroes. According to co-founder Neruda, the organization has even bigger plans.
Superstars like Madonna and Coldplay fill it up, as do the Cologne Sharks at top games – the Lanxess Arena in Cologne can hold up to 20,000 spectators and is the largest indoor arena in Germany. With octagon For the first time, a European mixed martial arts organizer is stopping in the Rhine metropolis. The event is intended to be a milestone for the emerging sport.
“Sold out”, this is the stamp that organizers definitely want to get, emphasizes co-founder of the Czech organization Pavol Neruda in an interview with ntv. A few hours before the event, only a few percent are missing before Oktagon can report completion. History has already been written. There have never been more spectators at an MMA event in the Federal Republic.
Oktagon is currently conquering markets and locations that are not considered by other major organizers such as the UFC. The Czech Republic is still the home market, but Germany is now number two with three to four events a year. In England, people deliberately go to locations like Manchester or Newcastle – there are many fans there who don’t accept the travel and prices of the UFC when it visits London.
As an organizer you want to become even more international and become the market leader, especially in Europe. “We would like to be like the Formula 1 of martial arts. Like a Grand Prix, we bring big events from country to country. There is great enthusiasm and the whole city lives these events. That’s what we want to achieve with Oktagon,” says Naruda.
octagon-Founders: Are storytellers
The Czechs are still a long way from Formula 1, at least financially. Sales amounted to ten million euros in 2022, but this year it is already 17 million. A sign that MMA is booming as a sport. With the UFC, KSW and the PFL, there are several organizers that compete globally. The UFC failed to sell out the Lanxess Arena in 2010 with around 13,000 spectators. Octagon takes a slightly different approach. “We see ourselves as storytellers and lovers of sports,” says Neruda. “Our approach is more focused on storytelling and the event itself, while other organizers focus more on the TV product. We want to tell the story of each fighter. With us you will be entertained from start to finish on the day of the event, “The hall is already full for the first fight. That’s unique.”
In addition, the conditions for fighters should be better on the financial side than in other organizations. “We try to pay the fighters the maximum. From a business perspective, that makes perfect sense,” says Neruda. Other promoters are in a frenzy when it comes to bonus payments or have dubious donors in the background. “We want to create a sustainable system that still allows growth. Compared to Europe, we pay between several thousand for starters in our organization up to six-figure sums, as you can see in the Gamechanger tournament, where there is a million euros in the pot and the Winner gets 300,000 euros.”
With an average of two fights per year, that would still not be enough for beginners to practice the sport professionally. Neruda therefore refers to the marketing by Oktagon. The reach and platform would make many sponsors aware of the 185 fighters who are now under contract. In this way, fighters and MMA organizations also support each other. Through marketing, Oktagon creates proximity to the audience, and the fighters’ own reach on their social media channels then carries interest over the often months-long breaks without an impending fight.
Moeil is fighting for the title, Eckerlin is fighting for a great opportunity
The concept is also working in Germany. Accordingly, many of the organization’s crowd-pullers are there in Cologne. Frankfurt’s Christian Eckerlin is the big draw; in the welterweight division he takes on the Brazilian Apollo Silva. Naruda says he has the X factor, that certain something. Eckerlin is even a star in the Czech Republic, but the fans there would rather see him lose. If Eckerlin wins in Cologne, it could soon be about the Oktagon title – or the fight against Christian Jungwirth, which was actually planned for Cologne. One title already remains safe in Germany. The main fight features Hatef Moeil and Todor Lazev, a heavyweight from Cologne and a heavyweight from Stuttgart.
Former professional boxer Deniz Ilbay (featherweight against Corey Fry) also wants to use the home advantage, as does Konrad Dyrschka (lightweight against Thiago Silva). Kerim Engizek is likely to be spectacular again. After his lightning knockout in his debut a few weeks ago, he faces Adam Horvath in the middleweight division. Like Moeil, the three of them train at the UFD Gym in Düsseldorf.
Gym boss Ivan Dijakovic knows why he has placed his fighters at OKTAGON and what he has in the organization. “I am impressed at the speed at which the organization has developed. After just five years, they have not just one but two legs on the German market.” In the case of Cologne, the proximity was of course one factor, the fascination for an event of this magnitude was another. “I’m just impressed that they sold so many tickets and excited about the atmosphere.” However, the manager of numerous fighters still sees room for improvement. “You can certainly do more to reach the fans,” Dijakovic tells ntv with regard to the eventization.
Neruda announces “absolutely crazy things” for Germany
But there are other fighters from Germany who should guarantee a spectacle. Ex-UFC fighter Niklas Stolze (La Onda Gym Magdeburg) returns to Oktagon after more than five years. With Anrej Kalasnik he faces an experienced welterweight fighter. After around 18 months without a fight and three defeats in a row, Stolze wants to get back on the road to success in Cologne. Chihad Akipa from Cologne is fighting in the middleweight against Matthew Bonner.
With Arijan Topallaj, the Czech organizer has signed one of Germany’s greatest talents in the featherweight division at short notice. Five of his six professional fights did not go beyond the first round. The undefeated Topallaj from the Planet Eater Gym in Balingen ended everyone early; he will meet Roman Paulus, a kind of octagon homegrown, in the Lanxess Arena. The 23-year-old Slovakian only won his contract through a reality format hosted by the organizer.
The event in Cologne – whether completely sold out or not – is already a success for the Czech organizers. At the end of the interview, Neruda has some bad and some good news for the German fans. Oktagon will cancel the planned event in Berlin’s Mercedes-Benz Arena in the fall because they are planning something “absolutely crazy” in Germany. He wasn’t allowed to give any details, but the company had to set priorities in this case. Berlin will then be planned for 2025.