Team Lakay coach has high hopes for Folayang to win in Macau

MANILA, Philippines – Many believe that Eduard Folayang finds himself in a make-or-break situation against a high-caliber opponent like Adrian Pang as the renowned Filipino fighter is way past his prime and has suffered crucial defeats in his 20-fight prizefighting career.

However, Team Lakay head coach Mark Sangiao remains optimistic that Folayang will have his hand raised in triumph versus Pang as both men are set to duke it out in the co-headliner of ONE Championship’s “Heroes of the World” event in Macau, China on Saturday, August 13.

“Definitely, this is a tough challenge for Eduard. But iron sharpens iron. Eduard is prepared for this fight and is ready to go,” Sangiao told Rappler.

Although Folayang is fresh from a scintillating performance against Japanese veteran Tetsuya Yamada in his comeback bout last January, he faces much tougher foreign opposition in Pang.

Pang (22-8-2) is currently riding high on a 3-fight winning streak and has only gone the distance 7 times in his professional career, owning 10 submission victories and 5 knockout triumphs.

The 38-year-old Australian stalwart made a statement in his last two matches under the ONE Championship banner, submitting Vincent Latoel with a third-round guillotine choke in December 2014 before defeating Peter Davis by a 48-second technical knockout in October 2015.

Sangiao knows that Folayang has his hands full come fight night, but he expects his valued pupil to make necessary adjustments throughout the 3-round lightweight contest and bank on his experience.

“You can never count out an Eduard Folayang. Time and time again, Eduard proved that he could bounce back. He always finds a way to reinvent himself,” he said.

Sangiao, a former mixed martial arts competitor who had a professional record of 7-2, cited that Folayang’s string of losses made him a better fighter inside the cage.

After his 8-second knockout defeat to future UFC lightweight combatant Jon Tuck in November 2009, Folayang piled up 6-straight victories, which included wins over Bao She Ri Gu Leng and Vuyisile Colossa in the now-defunct Martial Combat organization.

Following his split decision setback to Filipino-Danish Ole Laursen in March 2012, Folayang positioned himself as one of the logical options to vie for the inaugural ONE Championship lightweight belt by outpointing Felipe Enomoto 5 months later.

“Landslide” tasted a two-fight losing skid at the hands of Lowen Tynanes and Kamal Shalorus, but he managed to redeem himself by compiling two-consecutive wins over Vincent Latoel in December 2013 and former lightweight titleholder Kotetsu Boku in May 2014.

Folayang, who was shelved for nearly 14 months due to a brutal knockout loss to Russian prospect Timofey Nastyukhin in December 2014, jubilantly returned inside the ONE Championship cage by scoring a lopsided decision victory over Yamada 7 months ago.

The 32-year-old Baguio City native turned back the clock against Yamada, pummeling his opponent with his deadly striking arsenal and efficiently utilizing his takedown defense.

In addition, Folayang was able to drop Yamada with a left hook in the first round and employed looping right hands, spinning back kicks and an effective sprawl that forced his Japanese counterpart to desperately shoot for takedowns in the latter part of the match.

“He managed to improve as a fighter and harness new skills, despite the painful losses. In this profession, you have to learn from your mistakes to become a better competitor. That’s why Eduard is more matured and intelligent as a fighter right now,” Sangiao stated.

It was evident in his last outing against Yamada that Folayang extensively worked on his ground game during his layoff, but Pang is known to be well-versed in taking his cage foes down to the mat and a highly-regarded submission specialist.

Sangiao stressed that he is not worried about Pang’s leverage in the grappling department, asserting that he can see loopholes in the Aussie’s fighting style.

“As part of the preparation, we watched footages of Adrian Pang’s previous fights to study his approach in his previous bouts. I don’t want to go into detail, but we can see loopholes in his game,” he remarked.

With Pang being touted as next in line for Shinya Aoki’s ONE Championship lightweight title, Sangiao hopes that Folayang could earn a date with the Japanese champion if he picks up a decisive victory over the Australian contender. (READ: ONE FC: Pinoy fighter Folayang expects big reward if he beats Pang)

“Like what I’ve said, this is a tough test for Eduard. But I am confident that he can win. And hopefully, ONE Championship will grant him a title shot if he wins,” he ended. – Rappler.com