Folayang, Kelly headline URCC 22: Dekada

MANILA, Philippines – Fight fans can expect only the best when the longest running MMA organization in Asia takes center stage again.

Coinciding with their 10th anniversary, the Universal Reality Combat Championship (URCC) will hold URCC 22: Dekada – which will feature some of the best MMA fighters in the Philippines today – on Dec. 1 at the Mall of Asia Arena.

“It’s going to be a big night for MMA fans since we’re going to entertain them not only with two explosive fights but 10,” URCC founder Alvin Aguilar said during the official press conference Thursday at Padi’s Point restaurant at the SM Mall of Asia in Pasay.

“It’s a must-see event," he added.

The card will be headlined by two of the best fighters in the Philippines, Eduard Folayang and Eric Kelly.

A lightweight sensation from Team Lakay Wushu, Folayang will be strutting his wares against undefeated wrestler Lowens Tynanes of King of the Cage in the main event while the undefeated Kelly will be putting his clean slate on the line versus Brad Terrey in the co-main event.

Both fighters were scheduled to fight for the ONE FC titles in ONE FC 6 but decided to pull out to focus on the said event.

"We're trying to prepare our fighters for the big leagues, if we want to. We can always take the ONE FC titles," said Aguilar, expressing confidence in his fighters.

Folayang will try and continue his hot streak as he takes on the dangerous Tynanes, an accomplished wrestler with an undefeated record both in the amateur and in the professional ranks.

Tynanes is a two-time National All-American and is yet to taste defeat in 18 bouts (both amateur and professional). Despite the unwarranted criticisms that this matchmaking gets, Aguilar still believes that this match is going to be exciting and that Tynanes is a huge threat for Folayang.

"People think that we just picked one American to give Eduard an easy fight. That's not the case, Tynanes is a very dangerous opponent," Aguilar said.

“If Eduard can beat him then he is prepared to fight in the US, where mostly everybody has an extensive wrestling background,” he added.

10 years strong

Aside from the huge fight card at hand, Aguilar also took the time to talk about how the URCC has managed to survive for 10 years ever since their humble beginnings.

"When we started this, almost every MMA organization in Asia laughed at us. Ten years later, we're number 1 in Asia, I can confidently say that," Aguilar said.

With the URCC’s growth came the growth of MMA in the Philippines. When the URCC began in 2002, MMA in the country was considered to be in its infancy. Fast forward 10 years later, the country has been lauded as the MMA hotbed of the region, producing fighters who are making waves in the continent.

"Now we have other MMA promotions coming here claiming they're Filipinos but they're not. We started this here, all of our fighters here are homegrown and we make sure that they represent our country well." Aguilar reiterated.

When asked about the distinction between the URCC and other local MMA promotions, Aguilar returned back to his roots,

"We're all homegrown. We're not here to pretend to be one and try and make money off of Filipinos, but rather we're here to help them grow," he said.

"No disrespect here but if you're not in the URCC then you're not one of the best fighters here," Aguilar continued.