goodmorningpapua.com – Adrian Mattheis had success in the recent One Championship. He has a dream to advance Papua from the results of his hard work in becoming a fighter.
The fighter Adrian Mattheis recorded a second-round knockout win over Alex Silva of Brazil in the bantamweight (56kg) of ONE Champinship in Singapore. The fight took place on Friday (11/3/2022).
The success of this fighter from Papua who is under the auspices of the Tigershark Fighting Academy has led him to break into the top five in the world.
“Alex Silva, who is ranked fifth in the world, is not an arbitrary opponent. Alex Silva once held the world championship belt. This victory led Adrian Mattheis to become the first Indonesian fighter to occupy the fifth position in the world. As Chairman of the Papua Top Team, I am proud of the achievements that have been recorded Adrian Mattheis from Papua,” said Dede Barabas who is also the chairman of the United Papuan Hope Foundation on Monday (14/3/2022).
“The success of Adrian Mattheis can not only be an aspiration for Papuan children but also a role model for other young people from other regions who want to pursue mixed martial arts,” said the Chairperson of the DKI Jakarta KBI Provincial Administration, Yoko Arthi Budiman who is also the owner of the Sasana Siam Papua Top Team in which became the training ground for Adrian Mattheis in his preparations.
With this result, 29-year-old Adrian Mattheis has recorded 10 wins and 5 losses (2 KOs) while Alex Silva (38 years) has a record of 11 wins and 7 losses (1 KO). Currently, the ONE Championship bantamweight champion is a Filipino fighter, Joshua Pacio.
“I will continue to train to prepare myself for the next fight. And, I am ready to face Joshua Pacio at any time. Because, my goal is to win the ONE Championship world belt,” said the eldest son of two brothers Philipus Mattheis and Jusmin Tempomissa.
Adrian Mattheis is the breadwinner of the family. He managed to run the family economy from a career as a fighter.
“My father is just a car driver for an oil palm truck in Sorong. So, I take the responsibility of paying for the education of my sister and cousin I consider my own brother. I also want to raise money to buy a nice car for my parents. It is my intention from the start,” he said.
Not only getting success as a fighter, but Adrian Mattheis was also successful in education. He has a bachelor’s degree in fisheries. He also wants to continue his education to get a Masters in Water Resources.
“I want to live a useful life and be able to develop Papua and create jobs for Papuan children. That’s why I want to take a Masters in Water Resources,” he explained.
The childhood of Adrian Mattheis, who won the ONE Strawweight Indonesia Tournament in 2016, was filled by a rather difficult background. Little Adrian Mattheis also felt the impact of the Ambon conflict, which made his family move to Sorong in search of a better life.
Before pursuing mixed martial arts, Adrian admitted that he had joined the Persiram Raja Ampat junior football club. He studied martial arts, especially karate, because he was often bullied when he was in high school and college around 2013.
Adrian’s passion for martial arts grew stronger when he met the figure of Zuli Silawanto. The trainer for the Kickboxing National Team (Timnas) at the World Kickboxing Championship in Italy 2021 is a coach who is the main coach at Tigershark Fighting Academy. Thanks to Zuli Silawanto’s mentorship, Adrian Mattheis has transformed into the tough person he is today.