Rich Franklin tours Asia in search of the next MMA superstar

Former UFC middleweight champion Rich 'Ace' Franklin will be travelling from gym to gym all across Asia, scouting for new talents in search of the next mixed martial arts (MMA) superstar.

The American MMA legend will travel to various Asian nations like Bangkok, Manila, Seoul, Tokyo and Beijing in a new documentary series by ONE Championship called “Rich Franklin's ONE Warrior Series”.

In this new show, ONE Championship’s video production team will be following Franklin’s journey across the region, chronicling the action to produce a series of compelling documentary videos.

Franklin, who is also Vice President of the promotion, described Asia as the hotbed of the industry’s top martial arts prospects and it comes as no surprise since martial arts has been home to the region for the past 5,000 years.

"Throughout my time in ONE Championship, I have been witness to some of the best martial arts talent I have ever seen.

"Stars today such as Angela Lee and Eduard Folayang came from the grassroots level of talent in Asia, and the next martial arts superstar is just waiting to be discovered," he said in a statement on Thursday.

The screening and tryouts process will consist of pad sessions, grappling demonstrations, conditioning exams, and an interview process, among others.

Once selected, athletes will compete in trial exhibition bouts with a chance at earning a six-figure contract with ONE Championship based on performance.

The first episode of Rich Franklin's ONE Warrior Series is scheduled for release in the first quarter of 2018.