MULTIPLE-TIME mixed martial arts world champion and legend, Rich “Ace” Franklin, is currently the host behind ONE Championship’s recently launched Content Stack, Franklin Speaking, a video podcast, which can be viewed on ONE’s official YouTube channel.
The 46-year-old Franklin, a former UFC Middleweight champion, will be joined by his long-time co-host, Jonathan Fong, the same chap whom he teamed up with on ONE Warrior Series, a travel series talent search whose that aims is to discover new martial arts talents across the globe.
TELL ME ABOUT YOUR NEW ‘SHOW’, FRANKLIN SPEAKING…
Franklin Speaking is a talk show, where the hosts seek to feed their intellectual curiosities through deep dive discussions on the stories, ideas or expertise of their guests. The aim is to entertain, educate or inspire their audience through a variety of topics. This talk show gives us the ability to connect with our audience through our guests on relevant issues.
WITH THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC IN FULL FORCE AND ‘HOME QUARANTINE’ ORDERS TO BE OBSERVED, HOW HAVE YOU ADJUSTED LIFE AS YOU KNOW IT? WHAT HAS BEEN THE SILVER LINING?
People often say, when life gives you lemons, make lemonade. When life gives me a lemon, I plant a seed from a lemon to produce a tree. That tree will supply me with lemonade for the rest of my life. I don’t make the best of a situation; I redirect and figure out my new course of action. The situation with this virus created the environment I needed to finally launch the show my team and I’d been working on for months.
WHAT’S THE ONE THING YOU MISS MOST (WITH THIS NEW ‘WORLD ORDER’ IN PLACE)?
Interesting choice of words… new world order, because we’ll never be able to return to the way things "used to be”. I’ll miss kids playing in the mud without the fear of some infection. I’ll miss someone saying “God bless you” after a sneeze rather than looking at you like patient zero. I’ll miss shaking someone’s hand without them sanitising immediately after.
IF YOU WERE HOSTING A DINNER PARTY, WHICH THREE MARTIAL ARTISTS (PRESENT OR PAST) WOULD YOU MOST LIKE TO INVITE AND WHY?
I’m going to take the liberty of loosely defining martial artists. Miyamoto Musashi mastered the art of the samurai so skilfully that he went into battle with a wooden sword against his opponents. Understanding strategy and refining skill at that level is unparalleled.
Muhammad Ali competed during a controversial time in history standing firmly on decisions he made that stripped him of his title and ability to compete in the midst of his prime. That’s the definition of both courage and dedication!
Finally, who could give an answer to this question without saying Bruce Lee...and for obvious reasons!
WHAT THREE QUALITIES REPRESENT A TRUE ‘WARRIOR’ TO YOU?
Someone who knows what they stand for and is willing to die for that cause. I don’t think I can put that concept into three words.
WHAT’S YOUR BIGGEST FEAR?
Fear is a tough concept for me to grasp. I don’t quite understand it. Let me give you an example. I was recently on a shoot for ONE Warrior Series, where we were jumping from cliffs and waterfalls. I wanted to do a gainer from a 15-metre waterfall. I’d never attempted something from such a height, or even a shorter height for that matter. I wasn’t scared, but rather stood there assessing my calculated risk.
I knew there was a high probability I wouldn’t succeed, so I decided not to do that type of jump. It was a good thing because I had a chance a month later on a different shoot, and I failed from a lower height. Though it hurt, you can bet I did it again and was successful several times by the end of the day. Ultimately, I ended up back at a 15meter jump just recently and accomplished what I wanted in the beginning.
WHAT VIRTUE DO YOU THINK IS MOST OVERRATED?
Sincerity. Even the devil is sincere to his cause...
WHAT’S THE ONE TALENT YOU WISHED YOU HAD?
I have a friend who can pick up a musical instrument, play around with it for a few days and sound like he has been playing his entire life. That would be nice.
WHO’S YOUR FAVOURITE SUPERHERO? WHICH SUPERHERO POWER WOULD YOU MOST WISH TO HAVE?
Growing up, Spiderman was my favourite. I could relate to the quirky outcast with a witty sense of humour perhaps. If I could have one superpower, I’d choose the power to heal. Imagine being able to touch the blind or take away sickness like Jesus. I’d be a very busy person given the current situation.
WHAT’S THE ONE CAUSE CLOSEST TO YOUR HEART?
It’s not even possible for me to limit this to one cause. I grew up in a low socio-economic environment and became a high school maths teacher. I have a passion for people in need from these backgrounds. It doesn’t matter if it’s feeding the poor, educating, housing, etc.
WHAT SONG BEST DESCRIBES YOUR WORK ETHICS?
There are so many to choose from. Although this may sound cliche, Eye Of The Tiger is a good message. Skip the chorus that everyone knows, but the message in between is about staying hungry and knowing what you stand for.
WHAT’S YOUR SPIRIT ANIMAL? AND WHY?
The Chinese zodiac says I’m a tiger, but my mum often says I’m a jackass. Not sure where that leaves me!
WHO/WHAT INSPIRES YOU?
I’m inspired by positively impacting other people’s lives, and the people who do and have done that throughout history.
IF YOU WERE A BRAND, WHAT WOULD BE YOUR MOTTO?
Oh Lord, I could take days to think of this! As an athlete, you treat yourself as a brand, but I never developed a motto.