8 November 2019
By Kevin Estrada
Eduard Folayang, bloodied and all, got more than enough to get a technical decision win over Mongolia’s Amarsanaa Tsugookhuu before the main event of ONE: Masters of Fate on Friday evening at the Mall of Asia Arena.
A wire-to-wire performance by the Landslide was just marred by the accidental clash of heads in the second round, and get the unanimous nod after the judges ruled in favor of the Team Lakay poster boy in the Lightweight battle.
Folayang used the kicking game to its full advantage, getting low on the legs before scoring one on the head of Tsugookhuu in the opening round, much to the delight of the home support who are looking for a clean sweep before the main event between Joshua Pacio and Rene Catalan for the ONE Strawweight title, in which the former ONE World Champion did.
However, the exciting bout came into a halt when Folayang got a massive cut below his left eye after a clash of heads, forcing the fight to be halted at the halfway point of the second round, much to the dismay of everyone inside the arena who are looking for a disqualification, thinking that it was intentional.
Lakay head trainer Mark Sangiao felt the letdown as the Landslide is way ahead on the cards when the injury stoppage was happened.
“Nakakahinayang, kasi Eduard is winning the fight,” he said after the dominant first round. “He wants to fight actually, when he was headbutted.”
But the chagrin turned into celebrations after the decision in favor of the Landslide, snapping a two-bout losing skid as he hiked his record to 22-8 in MMA.
Follow the writer on Twitter: @kevinlestrada
