Oktagon MMA owners hope to ‘rule Europe’ after success of Oktagon 62 stadium show in Germany | Sporting News

The two men behind the rise of European MMA promotion Oktagon MMA have spoken about their plans to continue growing their brand to be come the go-to fight organization in Europe.

Oktagon 62 smashed attendance records on Saturday night as a crowd of 59,000 packed Deutsche Bank Park, the soccer stadium of Bundesliga club Eintracht Frankfurt, for a spectacular event in Germany.

Speaking to the media after the event at the post-fight press conference, the two owners, Pavol Neruda and Ondrej Novotny, were delighted with how the night panned out, and spoke about their desire to build on the show’s success.

“We broke the world record together,” said Neruda.

MORE: Oktagon MMA crowns ‘King of Germany’ in front of 59,000 fans in Frankfurt

“We just showed the world what we always wanted, why we became an MMA promotion, why we came to Germany. To show the sportsmanship and show the public that it is a great sport and that these sportsmen deserve to be popular, to be followed, and to fight in front of such a great crowd like tonight. 

“And we proved it, not just here in this venue and this beautiful city of Frankfurt with their great fans, but also with (new German broadcast partner) RTL+, which is a huge step. 

“We showed that Oktagon is the new big thing for Germany, and we are very, very proud of that you guys were all a part of it.

“We were here just two years ago trying to negotiate a deal with the arena. We told them, ‘One day we will make a tournament here,’ and they were just like, ‘Yeah, sure. You guys!’ And now it happened. So big thanks to everyone.”

Novotny, meanwhile, had fewer words to share as he attempted to digest the night’s events as the promotion enjoyed the biggest show in its eight-year history.

“I still don’t have words, and no voice!” said Novotny, who also serves as the ring announcer for the promotion. 

“I will just say that it’s a dream come true and I will realize maybe after 14 days what we just did today.” 

Oktagon MMA

Germany will form a major part of Oktagon MMA’s schedule in 2025

Oktagon officials have already announced 13 events for their 2025 schedule, including seven in Germany, and while a stadium show is currently not among them, Novotny and Neruda admitted that another one could be feasible in the future, and could eventually form a regular part of the promotion’s annual calendar.

“We’ve got a lot of plans for Germany, but it’s not easy to plan for football stadiums and to fulfill them,” said Novotny. 

“I would love to do it, but probably not next year. But you never know.”

“In the future, that’s supposed to be normal,” added Neruda. 

“You’re supposed to do one or two stadiums per year and I think this was a very important step towards it. 

“We’ve really spread our brand like crazy, and the sport, to the people. So we are getting closer to this new standard.”

Oktagon MMA

Oktagon MMA bosses: ‘We want to rule Europe’

Oktagon have enjoyed huge success in their home countries of Czech Republic and Slovakia, and that success has also translated to Germany over the last two years. 

Novotny said they want to build on that success and become a destination for Europe’s top fighters to compete on the big stage as they continue to build their brand across the MMA world.

“It’s not about the countries (who are hosting the events). It’s about who’s watching you where,” said Novotny. 

“We want to stay humble. We want to definitely do more tournaments in Czech Republic, Slovakia and Germany, and from these three countries we want to rule Europe.

“Like we said before, and we’ll still stick with it, we want to be the MMA Champions League for Europe and maybe a few other countries. But this is our goal, this is our target, and we believe European fans recognize that they can cheer for us.”