Pacquiao’s UFC fighter Striegl follows path to glory
HONG KONG: Mark Striegl makes his UFC debut in Abu Dhabi this weekend having taken a path forged by centuries of feared Filipino warriors and followed by boxing great Manny Pacquiao. Striegl based himself in the cool mountain climate of Baguio City and it paid off as he became the only Philippines-based fighter on the UFC’s books.
“There’s the high-altitude training but there’s also the history there,” said Filipino-American Striegl. “Once I’d fought there, I couldn’t get myself to leave.” Baguio City-on the northern Philippines island of Luzon-has in the past hosted eight-weight world champion Pacquiao’s training camps. The 32-year-old MMA bantamweight
Striegl first visited Baguio a decade ago for a mixed martial arts bout.
He met a local woman and fell in love both with her and the popular Filipino holiday destination, which offers welcome respite from the sticky heat of much of the sprawling tropical archipelago. The mountains are home to the indigenous Igorot people, legendary warriors who resisted colonial domination for hundreds of years. From 1565 to 1898 they successfully fought to keep the gold found on their lands out of the hands of Spanish colonial powers.
They continued their defiance after Spain ceded the Philippines to the United States. They then fought against Japanese occupiers during World War Two. “Everybody knows about the warriors from the mountains and that history really surrounds you,” said Striegl. Today Baguio City is home to gyms such as Shape Up Boxing and Team Lakay MMA that have hosted a string of top-class fighters, including Pacquiao and the Asia-based One Championship’s strawweight MMA world champion Joshua Pacio. —AFP