Eduard Folayang’s long journey to the promised land

Nissi Icasiano

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Eduard Folayang’s long journey to the promised land
The 9-year MMA veteran, widely regarded as the face of Philippine MMA, is eyeing a world championship

MANILA, Philippines – In the sport of mixed martial arts (MMA), every fighter dreams of becoming a world champion because it signifies that they have reached the pinnacle of success. 

Competitors invest blood, sweat, and tears to achieve the ultimate career-defining moment of having a gold-plated strap wrapped around their waists and hearing the announcer declare their names as champions. 

Eduard Folayang, a 9-year MMA veteran who is widely regarded as the face of Philippine MMA, seems destined to be a world champion after dominating both local and regional combat scenes.

Folayang rose to prominence in the Philippine-based MMA promotion Universal Reality Combat Championship (URCC), where he captured the organization’s welterweight belt in his debut and finished his tenure with 6 impressive victories with 4 coming by way of first-round knockout. 

His stellar run on the local level led him to his exodus from the Philippines to strut his wares in minor MMA leagues overseas such as Gorilla Warfare and Martial Combat, which likewise translated into impressive performances.

It was in September 2011 when Folayang finally set foot on the international stage under the banner of ONE Championship, but unlike other notable names in the Asian MMA industry, a world title opportunity was not served to him on a silver platter. 

Trekking the longest mile

Folayang’s journey to his first title shot in ONE Championship can be compared to Moses’ 40-year wilderness experience to reach the Promised Land. 

For a highly-decorated fighter like Folayang, it took him 5 arduous years to get a crack at the ONE Championship lightweight title after having fought in 11 bouts that came with 4 heartbreaking defeats. 

Folayang instantly became a staple of the Singapore-based MMA organization when he made his first promotional appearance in September 2011, defeating A-Sol Kwon via unanimous decision. 

After attaining an impressive victory over Felipe Enomoto in August 2012, Folayang was one of the logical options to vie for the ONE Championship lightweight belt, but a string of losses pushed him back in the rankings. 

Folayang bowed to Lowen Tynanes via first-round stoppage at URCC’s 10th anniversary event in December 2012, while he was outwrestled by UFC and WEC vet Kamal Shalorus in May 2013. 

“Landslide” managed to redeem himself by compiling two straight wins, including a dominant performance against former ONE Championship lightweight titleholder Kotetsu Boku in May 2014. 

While he was on a winning roll, another major setback hit Folayang as he was brutally knocked out by then-unknown Russian combatant Timofey Nastyukhin with a flying knee and two follow-up soccer kicks in their December 2014 lightweight tussle. 

On the night that Filipino MMA fans witnessed Folayang lying flat on his back in an immobile state, many observers perceived the end of his professional career. 

Although Folayang was in the threshold of a cruel conclusion to his illustrious prizefighting run, he found the verve to rise again and personify the truth in the old adage “you cannot put a good man down.”

A rain of manna

In the most difficult chapter of Folayang’s career that put him into a bad position to mount a seemingly impossible comeback, he found manna by his side. 

Manna is best described as “Bread of Heaven” because it was Yahweh’s provision of sustenance for Moses and the horde of Israelites in their long and tedious expedition. 

As a rain of manna poured on the entire Team Lakay stable in 2016, a satchel of it fell on Folayang’s lap. This year saw him inch his way out of the pit of his most painful loss and climb to the summit of ONE Championship’s lightweight division. (READ: Folayang seeks title win over Aoki to complete career revival

Thirteen months after his harrowing loss to Nastyukhin, Folayang triumphantly returned inside the ONE Championship cage by notching a lopsided decision victory over Japanese journeyman Tetsuya Yamada in January of this year.

The 32-year-old Baguio City native then survived a grueling encounter against Australian stalwart Adrian Pang by way of unanimous decision last August.

By scoring victories over two high-profile foes, Folayang was able to reclaim his stature as one of the best MMA fighters in Asia and become a contender for the ONE Championship lightweight title. 

“My journey in ONE Championship ever since my first fight has been a roller coaster. There are moments in my career when I am already near to the title shot, but suddenly I lose the momentum. And then I climb the ladder again and fall again,” Folayang said.

“This time I really pushed hard to be on the top. Finally after 5 years, I have the chance to be fighting for the title. I feel so happy,” he added. 

Seeing the promised land

Folayang is set to challenge Shinya Aoki for the ONE Championship lightweight title in the main event of the “Defending Honor” card, which takes place at the 12,000-capacity Singapore Indoor Stadium in Singapore on Friday, November 11.

Even if Folayang’s forthcoming title tilt is a cause for celebration, a potential nightmare looms as he faces a tall order in Aoki, who has long been considered the most dominant lightweight in Asia for the better part of the last decade. (READ: How Eduard Folayang can beat ONE FC champ Shinya Aoki

Aoki had 46 professional matches and fought in various MMA leagues such as ONE Championship, DREAM, Bellator, Strikeforce, and Shooto. 

Being a champion is also synonymous to the 33-year-old Japanese’s name as he has a lengthy list of accolades in both MMA and submission wrestling. 

“Aoki is on the top of the list of Asian MMA because he is a legend in mixed martial arts,” Folayang said. “Shinya Aoki is a very tough opponent. You can see that he has a lot of experience. He always puts the fight into his advantage. That will be a problem that I need to solve.”

In a few days, the cage door will be shut and Folayang will be sharing the den with Aoki, who defends the ONE Championship lightweight title for the third time. 

At that very moment, the ONE Championship lightweight belt will be within Folayang’s reach. But as of now, there is no guarantee that he will walk away with the prestigious prize fastened around his midriff.

Despite his faithfulness to Yahweh and accepting the responsibility of leading the Israelites, Moses failed to enter the Promised Land. 

But Yahweh allowed Moses to catch a glimpse of it on top of Mount Nebo as Joshua took the helm of shepherding the people whom he liberated from Egypt. 

Will Folayang have the same fate as Moses and merely see the championship belt in someone else’s hands? 

Folayang’s nearly decade-long MMA career has had its twists and turns, but it helped him in the process of transforming into a better version of himself inside the cage. 

In the long list of laurels in his curriculum vitae, being a world champion in MMA is the only thing missing.

Folayang knows the last stretch of his journey is the most crucial as one mistake can rob him of everything, similar to what happened to Moses at the waters of Meribah Kadesh. 

Even though a tough test awaits him, Folayang is determined to feel the soil with the soles of his feet, smell the sweet air, and finally raise his hands.

“I don’t want to waste this opportunity. I’m going to give it all because I want to be in the promised land and celebrate my victory with my comrades.” – Rappler.com

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