ONE’s Eduard Folayang Ready For ‘Unforgettable Night’

Eduard Folayang knows that the atmosphere inside the Mall of Asia Arena will make for an unforgettable night.

Folayang, a former ONE lightweight champion, meets Amarsanaa Tsogookhuu on November 8 from Manila, Philippines in the co-main event at ONE: Masters of Fate. The card also includes ONE Strawweight World Champion Joshua Pacio defending his title against Rene Catalan in the main event.

As teammates at Team Lakay, Folayang knows he will be completely prepared for Tsogookhuu thanks to Pacio and others.

“The training is getting better and better as the fight approaches,” Folayang said.

“The preparation together with Joshua is very important, especially since he is defending his belt. That gives us additional motivation to get back on the winning track.”

The 34-year-old Folayang, a native of Baguio City, has experienced two runs as ONE Lightweight World Champion thanks to victories over Shinya Aoki and Amir Khan. He is also a former silver and bronze medalist in Wushu at the Asian Games, and has risen to the top of the martial arts world with other World Title victories.

But in his last two appearances, Folayang has experienced defeat. He lost the title to Aoki in March and was bested by Eddie Alvarez in August in the semifinals of the ONE Lightweight World Grand Prix.

“It is very important, I need to get the win because it is the first step,” Folayang said.

“I am looking forward to my road to redemption.”

Folayang embarked on his martial arts career back in 2007, signing with ONE Championship in 2011. He has competed 17 times for ONE, scoring victories over the likes of Aoki, Khan, Ev Ting and former ONE World Champion Kotetsu Boku.

ONE Debut For Eduard Folayang

During that time, “Landslide” has watched as ONE has grown into the force it is today, while also seeing his own notoriety prosper.

“It is different now because more people recognize me and get the time to take pictures,” Folayang said.

“It is a good sign that the sport is becoming more and more popular in my home country. It is also very significant and there has been great work from ONE in the past months, especially when they broadcast the event at Japan in the U.S. aside from the numbers of their views on social media. It excites me so much because the promotion is aggressive in hitting its target and as a martial arts athlete, the desire to bring the best in me is very strong.”