Eduard Folayang sheds light on signature walkout song

SINGAPORE – Music serves a variety of purposes in people’s everyday life, but it plays an integral part in the sport of mixed martial arts (MMA).

While it takes intense training, world-class skills, and maybe even a bit of luck to get a win in an MMA bout, walkout songs have a pivotal role in putting a fighter in the right mindset to perform with the best of his or her abilities.

Although it does not necessarily dictate what happens inside the cage, the choice of walkout songs highly reflect each competitor’s personality.

Eduard Folayang, who is widely considered as the face of the Philippine MMA scene, has his own preference of music as he walks down to the cage.

The 32-year-old Baguio City native has been using the song “Hero” by the Christian rock band Skillet as his walkout theme since 2012.

The song was the first single of Skillet’s 2009 album Awake and talked about mankind’s need for a savior, with the hero being Jesus Christ.

Folayang is a devoted born-again Christian and is known for the public expression of his faith.

According to Folayang, he handpicked the song as his entrance theme because it is one way of telling the world that there is a hero in each person.

“I believe each of us has a hero spirit, but we need to unveil this spirit and use it for doing good. The more that we just keep to ourselves our ability to influence, the more helpless people there will be,” he told Rappler.

If Folayang were to choose a line from the song “Hero,” he would choose “I need a hero to save me now” because he believes that, above all else, everyone needs Jesus in their lives.

“That’s my favorite line of the song. It means there are inevitable instances when we feel down and anxious, and you’ll need a hero to uplift you and help you rise above the challenging circumstances you face,” he said.

Folayang is scheduled to challenge Shinya Aoki for the ONE Championship lightweight belt on Friday, November 11. He will be using the same song as his walkout tune in the first MMA world title fight of his 9-year professional career. – Rappler.com