MANILA, Philippines — Among all the ’90s action stars, Ronnie Ricketts is undoubtedly the multi-disciplined in their batch because he knows karate, mixed martial arts, kickboxing and arnis.
Ronnie is returning to the small screen via a marked role as the mentor to the five underprivileged kids wrongly accused of a crime in “Mga Batang Riles,” which premieres on GMA-7 on Monday, January 6.
With his TV comeback, Ronnie told Philstar.com in an exclusive interview that he was excited to impart his proficiency in martial arts to the show’s young leads, Miguel Tanfelix, Antonio Vinzon, Raheel Bhyria, Bruce Roeland and Kokoy de Santos.
“Martial Arts is evolving, it never stops. I started with Japanese karate. Nag-boxing ako, nag-Kung Fu ako. Nag-arnis and then nag-Mixed Martial Arts ako. Wushu, knife-fighting. Nandito ngayon sila. Dinala namin dito,” Ronnie said.
Ronnie began training in martial arts at five with his late brother, Grandmaster Christopher “Topher” Ricketts. He studied Karate, Kung Fu, Boxing, and Mixed Martial Arts, and also trained in kickboxing, arnis, and knife fighting. Ronnie is one of the senior members and first-generation members of the martial arts association Bakbakan International.
Bakbakan International was founded by his late brother Topher and has chapters in the United States and Canada. Among its teachings are kali, eskrima and close-quarter combat.
The returning action star is also excited about his comeback because he serves a dual role as an actor and a director.
Ronnie said that among the few things he asked GMA-7 was if he could share his suggestions, especially since he is a director himself and a martial artist, the latter his forte.
He was happy to know that the network was receptive to his idea of working behind the camera.
“This is it. Balik si Ronnie Ricketts. Balik ‘yung style natin. Balik ang action,” Ronnie said.
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