With Muay Thai fight vs Parr, victorious Folayang steps out of comfort zone
SINGAPORE – Some considered Eduard Folayang's matchup against John Wayne Parr in ONE X under Muay Thai rules as a death wish for the Team Lakay fighter, with all factors pointing toward an advantage for the Australian.
But Folayang did not shy away from the challenge and welcomed it with open arms.
Respect between legends ???? @johnwayneparr #WeAreONE #ONEChampionship#ONEX | PPV: 8PM SGT/8AM ET | Order PPV: https://t.co/eBUfsODAFL pic.twitter.com/LI28dqlizO
— ONE Championship (@ONEChampionship) March 26, 2022
According to the Baguio-based fighter, he decided on taking the fight in the spirit of mixed martial arts itself.
"That's the essence of martial arts. As a martial artist, you really need to get out of your comfort zone, You need to face a lot of challenges," Folayang said after the match.
When it came to their clash in the Circle, Folayang stepped up to the challenge and flashed his vintage brilliance in the striking only affair.
Though Parr was the more experienced Muay Thai artist, Folayang was able to use his Wushu prowess to his advantage.
Despite the gamble paying off, Folayang knew that there was much on the line if he had fallen to the Australian.
"Of course, for me, a lot of people here will criticize me if I lose especially that I had a very tough year, I had a losing streak," he said.
"But you know, we are martial artists, we are warriors in the mountains and we take challenges. Either how big it is, and if we are able to counter it, then we take pride in it because we know a lot of people cannot be able to make that decision to step to those who are legends," he added.
Folayang capped off a night of mixed results for Filipinos here at ONE X, ONE Championship's 10th anniversary show. He joined stablemate Stephen Loman in the winner's circle for Team Lakay.
Marrok Force MMA's Jeremy Miado blemished the Baguio stable's record for the night as he took a second round TKO win over Lito Adiwang as the latter also suffered an injury.
Miado's teammate Denice Zamboanga, meanwhile, failed to nail a redemption victory against South Korea's Seo Hee Ham as the latter took another unanimous decision win in dominant fashion.
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Editor's note: The coverage in Singapore was partially sponsored by ONE Championship to promote the sport. At no stage does the host organization have a say on the stories generated from the coverage, interviews conducted, publication date and story treatment. Content is produced solely by Philstar.com following editorial guidelines.
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