FEARSOME inside the cage yet humble in victory.
Eduard Folayang had just spent the past 25 minutes outfighting dangerous challenger Ev Ting to retain his ONE Championship Lightweight world crown.
Instead of rejoicing in his skill and proclaiming his greatness the first words from Folayang were to thank his opponent Ting and to express gratitude to God for all the blessings that he has received.
“I would like to thank Ev Ting, he really came prepared for this fight. We came to give the fans a good fight, and that’s what we have done. This is the essence of martial arts, five rounds to show how much we’ve prepared for a long time,” said Folayang.
He then expressed his gratitude to God for all the blessings he has received including serving as a role model for his countrymen especially the poor and the underprivileged who see in him an assurance that hard work and perseverance will ultimately be rewarded.
Folayang later acknowledged his checkered ONE Championship career. Prior to his victory over Ting, Folayang had won hard fought decisions over Tetsuya Yamada and Adrian Pang before his spectacular conquest of Japanese MMA legend Shinya Aoki which earned him the ONE Lightweight world title.
Folayang recalled his last bout at the Mall of Asia Arena where he was knocked out with a flying knee by Timofey Nastyukhin.
“This fight means a lot. A lot of you (fans) were discouraged the last time I was here. I slept on that mat. I rose up from my circumstances. I needed to train a lot to improve a lot. This is it on my shoulder,” said Folayang while clutching the ONE Championship belt. “Thank you for your support.”
Ting was fast on his feet as he threw jabs and kicks while continuing to dart in and then out to stay out of range of Folayang’s own counter attacks. Ting had the quicker hands and feet but Folayang was the harder more devastating striker.
Folayang was stung several times by Ting’s quick hits but by the third and fourth rounds Folayang’s heavier, more telling blows were taking their toll. Ting was flat on his feet by the fourth round.
By the fifth Ting had lost all ability to move around with speed. In frustration he dared Folayang to stand in the center of the ring and fight. Folayang was wise to Ting’s desperate ploy and continued to hit from afar to post the decisive victory.
Folayang, thanks in large part to coach Mark Sangiao, executed a perfect winning strategy to beat Ting. Folayang relied on his world class Wushu stance to strike from afar with kicks to go along with punches. Ting was quicker but Folayang completely negated Ting’s faster strikes through his longer, more lethal kicks and spinning back fists.
Folayang didn’t always connect but his length when striking with hands and feet kept Ting on his heels and unable to attack effectively.
After five rounds, the audience had to wait a few more minutes for the decision of the judges. But there was really no mystery. Folayang’s victory was total and everybody in the arena, including Ting himself, knew who had won the bout.
The judges then announced Folayang’s unanimous victory. A primal roar and cheer erupted from the audience of 20,000 at the Mall of Asia Arena as the Filipino champion’s hands were raised in triumph