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FILE – Former lightweight champion Eduard Folayang. PHOTO REQUEST / TRISTAN TAMAYO
MANILA, Philippines – Eduard Folayang may have dropped from the lightweight rankings, but ONE Championship CEO Chatri Sityodtong still has high hopes for the former king of the division.
Sityodtong said that Folayang (22-9) still has the fire inside him and is not close to retirement despite his age and mileage.
“I think Eduard is a phenomenal athlete, obviously a world champion and you know that all athletes win and lose,” Sityodtong said at a virtual press conference on Friday. “For me, when I look at Eduard and talk to him, I see that he is hungrier than ever, that he is always improving his skills, so I think there were many occasions in recent years when Eduard Folayang was written by some of the they hate, but the truth is that he is still very fresh and very strong and very athletic and very intelligent ”.
Folayang once dominated the lightweight division and had two reigns from 2016 to 2019.
He captured the title for the first time when he eliminated Japanese legend Shinya Aoki on November 10, 2017, but lost the belt to Martin Nguyen in his second defense just one day before Folayang’s anniversary with the championship.
The Team Lakay veteran then had another run with the championship when he held a surprising clinic against Amir Khan of Singapore on November 23, 2018, but lost again to Aoki four months later.
The 36-year-old Folayang then struggled to get back to being the once dominant one and lost two of his next three fights.
Between Folayang and his dream of returning to the title image is grappling specialist Antonio Caruso (7-1).
Sityodtong said Folayang’s status in the division will depend on his performance against Caruso and a victory could see the former champion slowly return to the lightweight classification.
In my opinion, it’s still up there. It may not be in the official ranking, but it is still there. If he has a good performance against Antonio Caruso, this is a typical story about the young lion against the grizzled lion that has been the leader of the pride for so long, ”Sityodtong said.
“Now obviously if he loses to a young lion, then we can start talking about a different path. Eduard has told me that he is ready and in better shape than ever. And it’s going to be a really fun fight … on any night I think Eduard can beat any lightweight in the world, on any night.
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