Fighting for the Country’s Pride: Eduard Folayang and Kevin Belingon
Word by: Jared Baliguat / Photos/Videos: Jeff Lo
One Fighting Championship™ brings a one of a kind mixed martial arts event in Manila through One FC: Pride of a Nation with a fully loaded fight card of the best and most watched mixed martial artists.
The fight card is all set. Be part of the history as the country’s pride Eduard “The Landslide” Folayang squares it off with the Swiss Champion Felipe Enomoto, and Kevin “The Silencer” Belingon pits off against the South Korean Champion A Sol Kwon, at the Smart Araneta Coliseum on August 31, 2012.
Though the fight is a non–title fight, Folayang and Belingon, who are URCC Welterweight and Flyweight Champion, respectively, have the reputation of being ‘deadly’ in the cage, promised to put a very good fight to showcase Filipino talent in mixed martial arts.
Eduard Folayang, who hails from Baguio City, developed his passion for martial arts at the age of 15. He got into wushu at 16. In 2011, he bagged the Gold Medal in the Southeast Asian for wushu. He learned the art of kickboxing, Chinese martial arts, fused in his skills in wushu, and added the grappling and submission skills. He has been competing locally and internationally in the field of wushu. As a multi – skilled fighter, he transitioned into mixed martial arts in 2007. He currently holds an 11:2 win – loss record under his belt.
His dominant fighting skill is stand up striking, where he effectively combines into his expertise in kickboxing. On his chances to win over Swiss Felipe Enomoto, “I think the chances of winning is high because I really prepared for this fight especially that this is the first time this event will be held here in Philippines. I pray hard. I believe God will give me the strength I need in this fight. And I am well motivated because our countrymen are always there support me.”
Kevin Belingon is from Ifugao and is an expert in the art of wushu. He shifted to mixed martial arts in 2007. He is on the Top 10 list of the Flyweight prospects in the world. Currently, he holds a 9:1 win – loss record. His best fighting skill is stand up striking. He quickly adds ,”Capable din kami sa ground, kaya naming i – control ‘yung kalaban namin. Meron kaming techniques na pag sa ground kami, hindi kami basta – basta nasa – submit.”
And how are his preparations for his upcoming match with A Sol Kwon? Kevin trains really hard and is determined to win his fight. He trains twice a day, six times a week. He trains with Eduard under the Coach Sang Yao. His training resumes as soon as they get back to Baguio.
(They came to Manila for this interview. They went back to Baguio on Wednesday).
“Pinapanood namin ‘yung videos nila, ‘yung mga laban nila. Pinag – aaralan namin ang weakness nila. Iyon ang ini – ensayo namin. Sa laban, ‘yun ang ina – apply namin.”
And to all MMA enthusiasts, Eduard shares, “Unang – una, i – assess ninyo sarili ninyo kung gusto ninyo ba talagang maglaro ng mixed martial arts, kung ano ang aim ninyo. Parang nag–aaral ka din niyan, e. Kasi mahirap din ‘yung papasok ka, then after that hindi ka rin naman magtutuloy kasi wala kang purpose, wala kang aim, di ba? So, kung talagang may gusto kang abutin dito sa mixed martial arts, kailangan i – set mo sarili mo, ang puso mo na gusto mo ang ginagawa mo. Importante na you are with the right people, you have the right training, the right regimen, and you have the right faith talaga. Huwag mong wawalain ang faith mo kay God na magli–lead sa iyo.”
Kevin adds, “Parang nag – aaral ka din na merong mga bagay na dapat gawin, may mga bagay na hindi dapat gawin. Ang important dito, pag pumasok ka sa mixed martial arts, dapat may disiplina ka. Pag ensayo, ensayo. Tapos, dapat dedicated ka sa ginagawa mo. Pag nag – eensayo, talagang naka – focus ka. Kagaya ng sabi ni Eduard, be with the right people.”
Do these MMA experts feel any pressure? They both know that their match is a non – title fight, Eduard admits that, “you cannot remove the pressure during training, pressure from the people who are expecting you to do your best. The important this is that we can handle the pressure.”
“Normal lang na nerbiyusin ka. Pero ‘yung nerbiyos na ‘yun, kino – convert na lang naming sa aggressiveness. When I go inside the cage or the ring, isa lang ang naiisip ko. – ‘yung manalo kasi naka – focus ako sa game plan. Gusto naming ipakita ‘yung magandang laban sa ring,” Kevin adds.
MMA is not just about showing their physical prowess. Let’s hear from our guys the good things about it and the lessons they learned. Kevin shares that “the best thing about MMA is iba – ibang level ang makakalaban mo dito, iba – ibang skills. Pinag – aaralan mo kung ano ang weakness ng kalaban mo. Pag – aaralan mo kung ano ang game plan mo para matalo ‘yung kalaban mo.” And one of the lessons he learned is to “never underestimate your opponent. Kasi dito sa MMA, isang pagkakamali lang, baka ikaw ang matutumba or matatalo. Dapat careful ka sa mga galaw mo. Avoid mistakes.”
“Isa sa pinaka – importanteng natutunan ko sa MMA is ‘yung preparation. It’s very important how you prepare yourself, on how you assess your opponent, how you assess yourself. In every fight, I learned a lot of lessons, manalo man or matalo ako. And in those defeats, I rise up and continue. (MMA) is life. It’s about how you stand up and go despite all the problems,” said Eduard.
On August 31, Smart Araneta Coliseum will house the fight that will surely change the way people look at mixed martial arts. The matches that feature Filipino talents will definitely rock the house. And how can they make One FC: Pride of a Nation more explosive, way different from all other fights that they had in the past?
Eduard ensures that “the Filipino fans can expect a really good fight; really good matches in this fight. They can expect that we give our 101%. We trained very hard for this and they can expect that we show our very best in this fight. Come and support our Filipino MMA fighters who are representing our country internationally.”
“One FC is the biggest (MMA) promotion here in Asia. I trained hard and I’ll show my best for the fans. I want people to expect (that) there’s a lot of action involved here and a lot of excitement in every match,” Kevin assured all MMA fans. “Come and be part of the ACTION!”
And if I may add, a lot of fun!
More than showcasing the talent and fighting skills, MMA is about discipline.
Grab your tickets now!
Please call at Ticketnet at (632) 911.555.
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