In the wake of the fight cancellation between Marat Grigorian and Kaito Ono, which occurred after Grigorian missed weight and Ono refused to proceed at a catchweight, Marat and his trainer, Nick Hemmers, shared their perspective on the events.
Reflecting on the weigh-in day, Nick Hemmers explained the situation. “The weigh-in check was scheduled between 10 AM and 1 PM. At nine o`clock, he weighed 69.5 kilos, needing to reach 70.3 kilos. We only had 800 grams left to lose. We drank a liter, ran, took some off, and drank another half liter. He felt good, but the issue was he couldn`t go to the toilet.”
“I cannot pee. I cannot pee. That is a problem,” Marat added.
Nick continued, “We had to wait until he could pee, trying three or four times without success. So, we were about 30 minutes late for the weigh-in deadline. Even if you`re overweight, you still need to pass the hydration test, and we did pass it. We passed hydration, but half an hour late. Under ONE`s rules, this means a fine. If you pass hydration, you`re okay to fight, but you have to negotiate with your opponent because we were 340 grams overweight. That`s like half a bottle of water.”
Regarding the failed negotiations with Kaito Ono, Nick stated, “ONE handled the negotiations, not us. Kaito was informed about the situation at two in the afternoon and had until eight o`clock to decide – six hours. He waited until 1:30 in the morning, when everyone was sleeping, and then said no.”
Addressing his post where he suggested Kaito should play tennis instead of fighting, Marat was direct. “Yes, of course. Because look, we trained so hard for this big arena, this big event, and he just walks away from everything, only thinking about his paycheck.”
When asked if they understood Kaito`s contractual right to refuse based on the weight miss, Nick conceded, “He is right about the weight. But for us, we are fighters, we play the fight game. We don`t play tennis, we are fighters.”
“It`s the fight game, you know. We prepared for so long for this fight, only for 300 grams! It`s my fault, but come on, 300 grams! And you don`t want to fight on this big event, on this big stage,” Marat emphasized.
While Kaito received his payment, Marat confirmed he did not, because the fight was canceled. Nick explained that if Kaito had accepted, Marat would have paid him a percentage of his purse. “I think Kaito was looking for an easy way not to fight him,” Nick speculated.
Regarding Kaito missing the press conference earlier in the week, Nick suggested, “I think they were scared from the beginning.”
Marat agreed, “You know he was scared. If he doesn`t want to fight with me, he should have said it from the beginning, because I was also prepared for this fight. Mentally, physically, I left everything behind, prepared for this big event, and look what happened. So many disappointed fans here. Sorry for them, you know. But yeah, I`m very disappointed.”
Nick clarified, “Just to be clear, we missed weight, we are the ones that made the mistake in the beginning, but it`s a big difference if it`s two kilos or 340 grams. That`s nothing, that`s going to the toilet one time.”
Considering Kaito has primarily expressed interest in a rematch with Tyjani Beztati rather than focusing on a fight with Marat, Nick pointedly asked, “But did you see what Marat did with Tyjani?”
Marat then stated his future intentions regarding Kaito. “I don`t want to fight against him, Kaito. I don`t want to give him a chance to fight against me. This was a good chance for him. So, onto the next one. I don`t want to give him this chance again.”
Discussing potential next opponents, Marat explained why someone like Noiri would have handled the situation differently. “If Noiri was in Kaito`s position, he would take the fight for sure, because Noiri is a real fighter. I saw that. I know it. Noiri is a good, mentally stronger fighter, but in the eyes of Kaito, I don`t see the fighter mentality because for 300 grams, he just leaves the fight behind. Tawanchai or Noiri, it really doesn`t matter [who I fight next].”
Closing their thoughts, Nick thanked ONE Championship for their potential future opportunities. “We want to thank ONE Championship that we are here again. We can fight on the next event in one month, two months, in three months, he`s ready to go. This was a one-time slip-up in all these years. Marat had a long career. He fought the best in the world in every country. He never missed weight, never. This is once, and it will never happen again.”
Murray Blackwood 
Gareth Pendleton