Once again Eduard Folayang will face a hostile crowd when he meets Shinya Aoki once more.
Back in November of 2016, the Baguio-based wushu artist faced the Japanese grappler in Singapore – a place Aoki has considered his second home, as Evolve MMA is rooted there.
Folayang slew the sure-fire Hall of Famer, stopping him in the third round to win the ONE Lighweight World Championship.
And as the minutes passed by during that bout, he was able to gain the respect of the crowd.
On Sunday, he once again takes on Aoki in the latter’s home turf in the main event of ONE: A New Era.
Definitely, the crowd will not be on his side. Safe to say, they will be hostile.
It’s something the Philippine mixed martial arts legend is embracing.
“Of course I need to give a convincing victory — a different, creative, and innovative way to win the fight,” he shared.
“If I pull that off, I think that is one of the best ways to capture the Japanese fanbase.“
Aoki has been unstoppable for the last two years, winning his last three bouts by way of first-round stoppages. At the same time, Folayang has picked up three dominant decision wins – including a definitive decision win over Amir Khan last November to recapture the title as the world’s best lightweight.
Come Sunday, Folayang is expecting the same Aoki as the one he faced three years ago. And he is looking for a finish once more.
“I think Shinya Aoki will use the same old approach inside the cage,” the Filipino opined.
“Those who are commenting that his striking has improved may have not watched his previous fights carefully. If you would look at it, he clearly wants the fight to hit the ground as early as possible,” he continued.
“As much as possible, we want to finish the match. We want a convincing victory so it doesn’t have to go to the scorecards.”
