Boys to Men
One Championship’s Chatri Sityodtong and Saurabh Mittal’s friendship has stood the test of time
f you’d told me back when we were in school together that I’d be posing for a Singapore Tatler shoot with him one day, I wouldn’t have believed you,” says billionaire entrepreneur Saurabh Mittal with a laugh in between shots with his buddy Chatri Sityodtong. The two met as MBA students at Harvard Business School, and went on to manage Wall Street hedge funds. Today, Chatri is the founder and chairman of mixed martial arts sports league One Championship, and Saurabh was one of his earliest investors and advisers for the venture, and sits on the company’s board of directors. Coming from humble backgrounds, “both of us used to think money was the answer to success”, says Chatri. “But I think we discovered during our Wall Street days that after a certain threshold, money really doesn’t mean anything. This second journey now is much more about leading meaningful lives, and having fun while doing it. We’re inspiring people through heroes and celebrating martial arts, Asia’s greatest cultural treasure.” Chatri, a frequent motivational speaker, has an energetic cadence, while Saurabh has a more measured air. But according to the both of them, their 20-year friendship has seen its fair share of heated arguments. “We used to fight like crazy in business school, to the point where he once challenged me to a fight. But that was before he found out that I knew martial arts,” Chatri quips. “Even now, we can have yelling matches. But when the emotions die down, there’s no ego. We always allow the best idea to win.” And that is exactly how they are planning to win this business battle, all while having a blast of course.