MMA fighter Roberto Soldic is set to debut in the UFC after a nearly five-year stint with ONE Championship, acknowledging a significant difference in financial compensation. He stated his ONE Championship contract was “not even close” to his new UFC deal.
Soldic joined ONE Championship in 2021 following a successful run in Poland’s KSW promotion, where he was a two-weight champion. The ONE deal included promises of opportunities in kickboxing and Muay Thai, and a 10-fight contract. However, Soldic ultimately competed in only three fights for the promotion before his contract expired. He last fought in February 2025.
Speaking on “The Ariel Helwani Show,” Soldic explained that while he was initially presented with a financially competitive offer from the UFC in 2021, ONE Championship’s offer was larger. “I’m happy,” Soldic told Uncrowned. “I think I had the best offer as a fighter before deciding. I can say this. I had a very good offer, but ONE was a little bit bigger offer.” He expressed frustration at not fulfilling the 10-fight commitment, but confirmed he had no issues with being paid on time.
Soldic noted that ONE Championship seemed to prioritize striking-based fights in Japan and Thailand, while MMA appeared to be less of a focus. “I don’t know what’s happened with MMA, I know so many guys left ONE as MMA fighters,” he said. He added that payments were always made on time and that his departure wasn't related to financial issues.
Soldic will make his UFC debut at UFC 332 on October 3 in Salt Lake City, facing Khaos Williams. Prior to this, he remained active by defeating Tomasz Adamek via second-round TKO in a boxing match with Polish organization Fame one year ago. He stated he has no regrets about signing with ONE, despite the frustration of missing out on seven promised fights.
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