BEMEDALLED national athlete Jean Claude Saclag now moves to the ONE Championship stage after flying the flag in kickboxing and wushu over the past decade.
The three-time Southeast Asian Games gold medallist for kickboxing and the 2014 Asian Games silver medalist for wushu sanda now makes his ONE debut when he battles Lee Jun Young in a flyweight MMA bout set at ONE Friday Fights 78 live from inside Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok, on September 6.
Saclag has been a staple for the national team, as he’s also represented the country in the 2014 Wushu World Cup, winning gold there, while also snagging bronze in the 2013 Wushu World Championships.
This time around, he looks to carry the Philippine flag in the world of MMA while donning the familiar red trunks of Team Lakay.
It won’t be easy against the man Korean MMA fans fondly call the “Bad Guy.”
Lee comes in with a 5-1 record, four of which coming from finishes with his left hook looking like a lethal weapon Saclag will have to watch out for.
But Saclag will be more than up to the task if the Korean decides to stand and trade with him, as aside from his kickboxing experience with the national team, he gets to slug it out with some of the fiercest strikers of Team Lakay on a daily basis.
Saclag joins Carlos Alvarez on the ONE Friday Fights circuit as they look to follow in the footsteps of teammate Carlo Bumina-ang who became the first Filipino fighter to win a US$100,000 contract through Lumpinee.
The 29-year-old also gets a chance to regain the momentum of Team Lakay after a forgettable past month, with Bumina-ang falling in his main roster debut against Baatarkhuu and Estrada Dongga-as also getting finished by Pham Van Nam in OFF 76 more than a week ago.
