Phygital Fighting

Introducing Phygital Fighting

Phygital Fighting is a unique combat sport that combines digital competition with mixed martial arts. Athletes face each other first in a fighting video game and then inside the octagon, resulting in a fast, intense and highly technical battle. Bringing together esports strategy and physical combat, Phygital Fighting offers a thrilling new experience for fans of both worlds.

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Phygital Fighting at the Games of the Future 2026

Competition Format

There are 8 teams taking part in the competition. Each team has four MMA athletes representing different weight classes. Pairings are determined by the organizers, ensuring that each MMA athlete faces the same opponent from the opposing team in both stages: the digital stage (fighting video game) and the physical (octagon).

Teams

Each team has four MMA athletes, each competing in a different weight class.
The available weight categories are as follows:

61 kg (men)
66 kg (men)
70 kg (men)
77 kg (men)
84 kg (men)
93+ kg (men)

2 stages

Digital (video game on console) + Physical (MMA in octagon)

Digital Stage

Athletes compete one-on-one in a console game using pre-selected and pre-approved characters. Matches are best of five (Bo5) and end when one player has won three rounds. Each round is timed with an on-screen timer of 60 counts.

Scoring:
Win: 2 points
Loss: 0 points
Draw: 1 point each

Athletes can earn a maximum of 6 points in the digital stage (3 round wins x 2 points). All points scored are then added directly to the team total .

Physical stage

After the digital stage, the same pair of athletes compete in a MMA fight in the octagon. Each fight consists of three rounds of four minutes.

Scoring

Points are awarded as follow:

Early victory (knockout, submission, disqualification, referee stoppage, etc.): 7 points
Unanimous decision: 6 points
Split or majority decision: 3 points
Draw: 1 point per athlete
No Contest: 1 point for each round won by the athlete

All points earned in the physical stage are added to the team total.

How the winner is decided

Teams are ranked based on the total number of points earned across all matches. The team with the most points is the winner of the competition. If there is tie according to the results of all matches, the winner is determined by additional indicators.