After his impressive win against Andrew Leone last April, Kevin Belingon (18-5) was guaranteed a title shot against ONE Bantamweight World Championship Bibiano Fernandes. But as fate would have it, Fernandes suffered an injury.
But Belingon wanted to remain active and now he has a shot at gold – interim gold, that is.
On Friday, July 27, the 30-year-old Team Lakay standout will square off against two-division world champion Martin Nguyen in the main event of ONE: Reign of Kings at the SM Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City. Belingon decided his own fate.
“Even though I was guaranteed a title shot, I took this bout to prove that I never back down from any challenge,” shared Belingon, who is on a five-fight winning streak.
“I always face challenges up front. It does not matter whether I beat Martin now or I beat him later — he is determined to get the bantamweight belt, so sooner or later I will have to face him. Now seems like the perfect time.”
Belingon is the rightful challenger to Fernandes. He has beaten some of the best bantamweight in the division – namely Muin Gafurov, Toni Tauru, Reece McLaren, Kevin Chung, and Leone. Nguyen, however, is a different animal.
“This is going to be a very exciting match. To take on an elite athlete like Martin, it will only be good for my experience. I look forward to testing my skills against him,” he expressed.
“Martin has very good, high-level skills. His wrestling is very strong, and so is his boxing. He is aggressive, and he punches with power. There is no underestimating this guy. But I think his biggest weakness is his speed, especially in this fight. He is not faster than me. I think this will come down to who gets there first.”
Knowing how dangerous Nguyen is, Belingon did not look any further for someone to seek advice from. Helping him out in this high-stakes match-up is none other than former ONE Lightweight World Champion Eduard Folayang.
“I am training very hard to make sure I am well-equipped with everything I need to face any situation,” Belingon said.
“Eduard gave me some tips and also shared his experience with Martin in the cage. We always help each other out at Team Lakay. We share our victories and experiences, and we grow as a team.”
Come Friday, Belingon is not just looking for personal success. He is fighting for team redemption.
Quotes from ONEFC.com
