Art of War Fighting Championship
The Art of War Fighting Championship (英雄榜/Art of War/AOW) was a Chinese professional mixed martial arts promotion based in Beijing, China. The Chinese title "英雄榜" literally translated means "Gathering of Heroes." Art of War FC has no relation to the defunct US MMA promotion Art of War Undisputed Arena Fighting Championship. Art of War I was held at the Beijing Sports University on November 6, 2005. The inaugural event made it the first professional mixed martial arts contest in the People's Republic of China. To date, AOW has held 15 events in mainland China. Its largest event was Art of War 12 - Invincible, held at the National Olympic Sports Center Auditorium in Beijing on May 23, 2009 to an audience of around 6,000 fans. The event attracted many international guests, including former UFC Heavyweight Champion Tim Sylvia, renowned ring announcer Michael Buffer, and experienced referee "Big" John McCarthy. The Art of War Fighting Championship has featured some of China's top mixed martial arts athletes, including IKF World Champion and 2002 King of Sanda champion, Bao Li Gao; 1996 Chinese Olympian and China national judo champion, Ao Te Gen Ba Tar; and 2004 Chinese Olympian and China national Greco-Roman wrestling champion, Sai Yin Ji Ya. In addition, Art of War FC has featured some of the world's top fighters including WKN European Muay Thai champion Filippo Cinti of Italy, DEEP veteran Jeong Ho Lee of Korea, and Japanese Karate and ju-jutsu expert, Setsuma Takeda. Art of War is the first mixed martial arts organization to be broadcast by CCTV-5, China's largest sports broadcasting platform with over 1 billion audience coverage in China and internationally. Art of War IV, broadcast on December 29, 2006 set a record as the single largest mixed martial arts tournament broadcast in the world. In March 2008, Art of War Fighting Championship signed a China nationwide broadcasting agreement which will bring the tournament into the homes of over 200 million viewers around the country on a weekly basis, including regions of Hong Kong, Macau, Australia, and New Zealand. Origins The Art of War Fighting Championship was founded by Brazilian Jiu-jitsu instructor Andy Pi and his younger brother Konrad Pi, both Chinese Americans living in California at the time they conceived of the idea of creating an MMA promotion in China. After Andy Pi won a tough match against Xu Xiaodong with an armbar submission, he wanted to find a way to promote jiu-jitsu in China. Konrad Pi, an investment manager and private helicopter pilot living in San Diego thought it was a good idea, but the idea would be hard to execute due to the restrictions formed by the Chinese government as well as the difficulty of raising money for a big promotion. Fortunately, their father Frank Pi is a business executive with ties to China. They successfully made contact with the Chinese government and obtained the proper permits for hosting a sporting event. The Pi family eventually found a few potential sponsors, including football star