Sangiao not worried about hometown decision in Folayang’s title bout

Nissi Icasiano

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Sangiao not worried about hometown decision in Folayang’s title bout
Both men are scheduled to collide in the main event of ONE Championship’s 'Defending Honor' card in Singapore

MANILA, Philippines – As Eduard Folayang challenges Shinya Aoki for the ONE Championship lightweight title outside his native turf, Team Lakay head coach Mark Sangiao is not perturbed by what may be a hometown decision favoring the Filipino fighter’s Japanese foe. 

Both men are scheduled to collide in the main event of ONE Championship’s “Defending Honor” card, which takes place at the 12,000-capacity Singapore Indoor Stadium in Singapore on November 11.

Singapore has been the 33-year-old Japanese’s second home since he joined the Evolve Fight Team in 2011. 

In addition, Aoki has fought 4 of his last 9 bouts in the country known as “The Lion City” since he had his successful ONE Championship debut against Arnaud Lepont in October 2012. 

With the championship clash being held in Singapore, Sangiao expects the 3 judges at cageside will decide the outcome fairly if the fight goes full 5 rounds. 

“I’m not worried about a hometown decision. Team Lakay has been part of the [ONE Championship] network for a long time, and we’ve never experienced unfair judging so far. I’m confident that it will be an even playing field in the November title fight,” he told Rappler. 

It will be Folayang’s tenth overseas match when he squares off with Aoki, who has long been widely regarded as the most dominant lightweight in Asia for the better part of the last decade. 

The 32-year-old Baguio City native has come out on top in 7 of his previous 9 out-of-the-country tussles, which included his lopsided decision win over Japanese lightweight Tetsuya Yamada last January and the grueling encounter with Australian stalwart Adrian Pang in August.

Furthermore, Folayang has strutted his wares on Singaporean soil on 5 different occasions, tasting defeat only once against Filipino-Danish journeyman Ole Laursen in March 2012. 

With less than two months before the title tilt versus Aoki, the longtime Team Lakay mentor divulged that Folayang is almost in 60% top form. 

“Eduard doesn’t stop training. It’s part of his lifestyle. But the big difference for this one is that he is very motivated. This upcoming title fight gave him a tough mindset and winning drive that can be very beneficial in the early stages of training camp,” Sangiao explained. 

Sangiao admitted the hardest part in Folayang’s preparation is plotting the right game plan to check Aoki’s delicate fighting style. 

(READ: How Eduard Folayang can beat ONE FC champ Shinya Aoki

Recognized by his moniker “Tobikan Judan” or “The Grandmaster of Flying Submissions” due to his spectacular submission triumphs, Aoki is heavily reliant on his specialization in the grappling department. 

Meanwhile, Aoki’s stand-up arsenal is entirely dedicated to taking his opponent to the ground, utilizing chain combinations of various Judo and wrestling techniques. 

“We are studying Aoki’s fighting style for hours, trying to extract every detail as much as possible. He has this unique fighting style, and solving it is a big challenge for us,” Sangiao stated. 

Although Sangiao shelves the idea of a biased result on the judges’ scorecards, he clarified Folayang still has to achieve a decisive victory over Aoki. 

“Everyone has a different interpretation. It might be different from the perspective of the judges and the fans. If Eduard’s going to win the belt, we have to leave Singapore without any doubt that he won the fight,” he said. – Rappler.com

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