ONE Warrior Series: Philippines' Joevincent So shows doubters pretty boys can fight, too

MANILA, Philippines — ONE Warrior Series: Philippines competitor Joevincent So has fought with a chip on his shoulder for as long as he can remember as a mixed martial artist.

This is because many in the MMA community, even his fellow prospects in ONE Warrior Series, expressed doubts in So's skills because of the way he looks.

Looking clean-cut and presenting himself well, So said that his fellow MMA fighters would question whether he belongs in the MMA arena.

"Actually, madalas sinasabi sakin yan ng mga kalaban ko pero sinasagot ko nalang sila sa loob ng cage. Wala naman talaga sa itsura yan eh, nasa laro yan." So told Philstar.com in an interview.

"Lagi nila sinasabi sa akin yan na sa pageant ka na lang sumali. Mali ka ata sinalihan na liga, ganyan. So, sinasabi ko na lang, tignan na lang natin yung performance sa cage." he added.

So had faced this particular challenge in most recent episode of ONE Warrior Series: Philippines as Joker Olivares, So's opponent in the sparring match to save their campaigns, had expressed the same doubts in the 28-year-old's skills.

Rather than let himself be affected by it, So used it to his advantage as he egged Olivares on. The latter's attitude also did not sit well with his Team Lakay coaches Mark Sangiao, Joshua Pacio and Geje Eustaquio.

"I have played a mind game with him. So, I used emotions, I tapped into his emotions and then from there, I destroyed his mental game," So said, as he tagged Oliveros late with a well-timed right hook, which sent the Team Passion fighter down on the mats.

"Nakita ko kasi, bago kami maglaban, alam ko na may grudge siya sakin so hinayaan ko lang siya magalit sakin. So nag tap ako sa anger niya, nawala siya sa gameplan niya." he added.

Olivares has since been eliminated from the show, as he and Ely Fernandez exited in Episode 3 last week.

Meanwhile, So lives for another week in the reality show aiming to find the best MMA prospect in the country to fight under Team Lakay in Singapore promotion ONE Championship.

So, who is among the 12 fighters left in the running, relished being able to improve his game with Team Lakay.

"For the few weeks na nakasama ko yung The Best Team in Asia, ang laki ng inimprove nila sa laro ko. As in, naramdaman ko, hindi lang sa physical ako lumakas, kundi sa mental game ko," said So.

"Pagbaba ko ng Manila, ang laki ng iniba ko sa game ko," he added.

ONE Warrior Series: Philippines airs its episodes every Sunday at 9:35 p.m. on GTV.