Former two-time ONE Lightweight MMA World Champion and Lions Nation MMA founder Eduard “Landslide” Folayang believes that rising bantamweight star Jeremy “The Juggernaut” Pacatiw will carry forward the gym’s momentum this April.
Pacatiw, one of the best bantamweights in the Philippines, will represent Lions Nation MMA for the first time in his return to the ONE Championship stage. He takes on Wang Shuo at ONE Fight Night 21 on April 6 inside Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand.
Folayang’s confidence in his teammate comes on the back of training quality sparring partners. Pacatiw has been mixing it up with the likes of former ONE Bantamweight MMA World Champion Kevin Belingon and #2-ranked bantamweight contender Stephen Loman.
“That’s one of our advantages here. We have guys like Kevin Belingon and Stephen Loman who are helping Jeremy, men who have been fighting for a long time, men who have a lot of experience with big fights,” he said.
“They are really making Jeremy feel what he should expect come fight night. They’re pushing him hard every day, and it’s such a big help for Jeremy as he tries to get another win in this upcoming fight against Wang Shuo.”
It has been a long layoff for the 27-year-old. He was also one of the men who jumped from Team Lakay to Lions Nation MMA last year.
Though “The Juggernaut” has sat on the sidelines for some time, Folayang isn’t worried, knowing that Pacatiw has always taken care of himself and his conditioning.
“Looking into this fight, Wang Shuo is more of a striker, while Jeremy is a seasoned well-rounded fighter,” Folayang said.
“Sure, Jeremy went through a long layoff – I think he was on the shelf for more than a year – but the nice thing about Jeremy is he’s always training. He’s always looking to learn and improve, plus Stephen [Loman] is helping him out with his conditioning.”
Should they map out the perfect strategy for Pacatiw, Folayang and company are confident that Pacatiw will walk out of Lumpinee with yet another win.
“I think it’s all about putting together a good game plan and executing it come fight night,” Folayang said. “And I believe Jeremy’s bound to get another win.”