Fighting for ONE FC gold remains Folayang’s top priority

Nissi Icasiano

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Fighting for ONE FC gold remains Folayang’s top priority
Eduard Folayang will use his showdown with Japanese lightweight Tetsuya Yamada to gauge whether he still has it to remain in the title picture

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia – Eduard Folayang, who is widely regarded as the frontrunner of Philippine mixed martial arts, has always been on the cusp of earning a world title shot since joining ONE Championship nearly 5 years ago.

However, the 32-year-old native of Baguio City, Benguet has consistently fallen short whenever he was on the verge of securing an opportunity at the promotion’s lightweight championship.

Folayang instantly became a staple of Asia’s largest MMA organization when he made his promotional debut in September 2011, defeating A-Sol Kwon via unanimous decision in his first fight under ONE.

After picking up an impressive victory over Felipe Enomoto in August 2012, Folayang was one of the logical options to receive a crack at ONE’s gold-plated strap, but a string of losses pushed him back in the rankings.

Folayang bowed down to Lowen Tynanes via first-round stoppage at Universal Reality Combat Championship’s tenth anniversary event in December 2012, while he was outwrestled by Kamal Shalorus in May 2013.

“Landslide” managed to redeem himself by compiling two-consecutive imposing wins, including a dominant performance against former titleholder Kotetsu Boku in May 2014.

While he was on a roll, another major setback hit Folayang as he was brutally knocked out by Russian prospect Timofey Nastyukhin in their December 2014 lightweight encounter.

Nastyukhin turned the lights off on Folayang with a flying knee and then nailed two soccer kicks on the ground to coerce referee Yuji Shimada to stop the action at 3:11 of the first round.

The knockout defeat completely derailed Folayang’s opportunity to challenge Shinya Aoki for the ONE lightweight belt.

Despite the rollercoaster ride in his 19-fight career, Folayang stressed that fighting for the company’s world lightweight title remains his top priority.

“My dream, goal and vision to have a title shot are still alive. This is another step or another journey to elevate my status as a contender for the title,” Folayang told Rappler.

After sitting on the sidelines for 14 months, Folayang makes his return to action and faces Japanese lightweight Tetsuya Yamada on the undercard of ONE: Clash of Heroes, which takes place at the 10,000-seater Stadium Negara in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on Friday, January 29.

According to Folayang, his 3-round meeting with Yamada will serve as a standard of measure to determine if he is still within the top-caliber rank in the sport. 

“Yes, I will gauge my performance. I have been out for so long, but I am still hungry. I still have the heart to compete,” he said.

Folayang aware of Yamada’s experience

Yamanaka, a 25-year-old native of Yokosuka, Kanagawa, is riding high on a 7-fight winning streak, which included two knockouts and one submission.

“I know he has his own strengths and weaknesses. My approach is to keenly study my opponent’s usual strategy inside the cage,” said Folayang.

“I am always ready. It’s very important to know your opponent’s background every fight. He is also a veteran, but of course, I have to know where he is good at. Yes, Yamada is a veteran. He has good at some specific areas. In the fight, I have to expose his weaknesses,” he said.Rappler.com

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