Asian Games 2026: How Varun Sanyal picked up MMA during military service

An exhausting check-in, a blackout on the day of the competition and eventual ouster without even stepping inside the competition arena. Needless to say that it wasn't the most memorable Asian Games debut for Mixed Martial Arts fighter Varun Sanyal.

But he created a fair amount of buzz, at first for his detailed account of how the logistical chaos in Nagoya left him without a room to rest and food to eat for several hours after landing.

Then came the unusual circumstances in which he could not compete. Attempting to cut weight without any support staff, Sanyal passed out during a sauna session and was eventually declared medically unfit for his traditional 77kg fight on Sunday.

Sanyal holds Permanent Residency in Singapore but remains an Indian citizen. His father Sanjeev Sanyal is a member of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Economic Advisory Council.

"I've been a lifelong athlete. I've played cricket, football, athletics, rugby in school. I picked MMA because I had watched it growing up. And I think it's the most beautiful and most valuable sport," Sanyal said.

Sanyal was born and brought up in Singapore, and holds a Business Management degree from Queen Mary University of London in England.

Singapore's permanent residency allows foreign nationals to live, work, and stay in that country indefinitely. Therefore, Sanyal can continue to hold an Indian passport.

"I picked up MMA during military service in Singapore as PR of Singapore. I love to serve in the military. I was doing logistics over there. And that's around the time I clicked up MMA.

"I grew up playing cricket in Singapore, played it in university as well. But it doesn't make you feel alive like MMA does. It (cricket) is not sort of adrenaline pumping. But, since I've been in India, I've been doing martial arts.

"Many people wrongly say that I'm a citizen of a foreign country. I grew up in Singapore but I've been a citizen of India from the time I was born, and I still am an Indian citizen."

He considers himself as a "fighting nomad", as the sport takes him all over the world.

"I'm based in Delhi, my parents live there. But, I travel around to train. Recently, I've been to Australia, I'm a fighting nomad. My main team fights in London, in the UK and Warriors Cove in Gurgaon.

"You have to get knowledge from everywhere. You can't just stick to one."

Asked how many fights he has in a year, Sanyal said, "For the longest time, I was an amateur. When I qualified for the Asian Games back in January, I was an amateur. Now, I've turned professional as recent as in June.

"In total, I've had 17 fights since 2022. Out of which, I've won 13. I've had the privilege of fighting some of the best champions at the amateur level from all over the world.

"I started training and fighting in India back in 2022. Before that, I would just train in Singapore and the UK, two countries which have established MMA ecosystems."

India's maiden MMA medal in the Games came through Suchika Tariyal, who won a bronze on Monday. She had acknowledged Sanyal's support in the Games.

"We've seen a lot of Indian fighters in general get mocked online over time. And I want our next generation of fighters to look at someone like myself or Suchika and be like, okay, we can go out there and take on the world."

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by The Bridge Desk. It is published from a syndicated feed.)