The Manila Times

PH’S FOLAYANG READY TO CHALLENGE CHAMP AOKI

- JEAN RUSSEL V. DAVID

after winning two consecutiv­e matches, Filipino mixed “The Landslide” Folayang wants to notch a third victory when he takes on ONE Lightweigh­t World Champion Shinya “Tobikan Judan” Aoki in the main event of ONE: Defending Honor Indoor Stadium in Singapore.

“I am at the peak of my abilities as a fighter. All the hard work I have put into training has challengin­g the great champion Aoki,” the Team Lakay standout Folayang said.

The Baguio City native added that he considered an honor to be inside the cage with the decorated

Folayang is coming off a twogame winning streak, beating Tetsuya Yamada.

With eight years of MMA experience under his belt, Folayang

“I will fight for the honor of my country and the people in my corner on he said.

Folayang and Aoki will clash in a

waiting a long time for this one. Eduard Folayang has been with ONE Championsh­ip since the beginning and has performed at an extremely high level in his last couple of bouts. He is deserving of a title shot which he earned with victories over Tetsuya Ya Championsh­ip CEO Victor Cui said in a statement. fight night,”

Fighting out of Shizuoka, Japan, Aoki is the DREAM Lightweigh­t Champion, former Shooto Welterweig­ht Champion, and the reigning ONE Lightweigh­t World Champion.

“This is the first time I will be fighting a strong Filipino warrior. I am excited to test my skills against a fighter repre Folayang is a great competitor with solid all- around skills. It should be an exciting matchup,” Aoki said.

 ?? CONTRIBUTE­D PHOTO ?? Eduard “The Landslide” Folayang (right) delivers a kick against an opponent.
CONTRIBUTE­D PHOTO Eduard “The Landslide” Folayang (right) delivers a kick against an opponent.

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