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It’s that time of the year once again. The Manila show of the premiere mixed martial arts league in the world today is here.
Still not convinced that this card is stacked? Here’s 5 reasons to stay-in on a Friday night to watch the event on FOX sports OR BETTER YET head-on to the Mall of Asia Arena to watch the 10-deep card live!
Ana Julaton and Jujeath Nagaowa look to start the night off with a bang
Remember the time when women fighting in MMA were seen as barbaric? Time’s have changed and for the better! As seen in the UFC, women’s MMA has provided a whole new level of excitement with their amazing pace and great technical work that fight fans enjoy.
This year’s card features two Filipina fighters. In the women’s atomweight division, Cambodia’s first woman mixed martial artist Tharoth Sam will face the young Jujeath Nagaowa. In the women’s flyweight division, former WBO and IBO Women’s Super Bantamweight Champion Ana Julaton looks to display her improved wrestling defense against Egyptian boxing champion Walaa Abbas in what’s sure to be a stand-and-bang affair.
And these are just the two matches in the prelims! This card’s stacked!
Team Lakay is out to seek vengeance
Last year’s OneFC 9: Rise to Power was a disaster for Filipino fight fans. All Filipino fighters were shutout of a win that night. That fight night was depressing, really depressing.
If the Filipino fans felt that way after that night, what more did the fighters and coaches of one of the best camps in Asia, Team Lakay, feel that night? If there’s a deeper word than depressed, that would be the word for it. That night, the camp’s best fighter Eduard Folayang was overmatched by UFC veteran Kamal Shalorus, bantamweight standout Kevin Belingon lost a close decision to eventual OneFC Bantamweight GP winner Masakatsu Ueda, and to cap the night of unfortunate events, the first Filipino MMA world champion Honorio Banario was upset by current OneFC featherweight king Koji Oishi. The latter was not just an upset, Banario got KTFO’d!
Fast forward to one-and-a-half years later, “Landslide” Folayang was able to string two straight wins against Vincent Latoel and Kotetsu Boku during Moment of Truth and Rise of Heroes respectively. “The Silencer” Belingon went 1-1 with the sole loss coming from a careless submission loss to Korean prospect Dae Hwan Kim during Rise of Heroes.
But poor Honorio Banario, “The Rock” lost in the rematch for the World Featherweight Championship against Koji Oishi. What’s more shocking is that the loss was a mirror image of how he lost in the first encounter as seen in the videos below:
OneFC 9
OneFC 13
Team Lakay is looking to sweep the night according to an interview we did during the open workout last Tuesday. Folayang will face Timofey Nastykhin, a FILA Pankration Champion and 7-1 in his career. Belingon will square-off against Shooto World Featherweight Champion Koetsu Okazaki. And finally, and we’re all rooting for him, Honorio Banario looks to bounce back in facing Brazilian submission expert, the 4-0, Herbert Burns.
Gracie Hunting
Ever since the early days of the UFC and before Pride FC shut down, every martial artist wants to beat a Gracie, ANY GRACIE. It started with Ken Shamrock to Kazushi Sakuraba to Matt Hughes, all wanted a piece of the first family of Brazilian jiujitsu. Beating a Gracie in an MMA match is certainly a great addition to any MMA fighter’s resume.
In a classic grappler vs. striker match, Roger Gracie will face former Ultimate Fighter 10 contestant James McSweeney, who surprisingly has an excellent 20-10 record after going into the Ultimate Fighter house with just a 4-7 record. McSweeney looks to hunt down a Gracie to add to his resume.
The Truth is finally set free!
First off, we can’t wait for this song to blast through the arena with Brandon Vera walking out in home soil.
After years of being in the UFC, finally Brandon Vera will compete in his home country.
Vera lost his last two fights, getting lost on whether he’s a heavyweight or a light heavyweight against world-class fighters Ben Rothwell and Mauricio “Shogun” Rua. In his coming home party, Brandon Vera will face the current URCC Heavyweight Champion Igor Subora in the night’s co-main event.
Bibiano Fernandez is back!
Is Bibiano Fernandez in love with the Philippines? We think so! Out of the last 3 matches of Fernandez, 2 took place in the Philippines. It’s always a treat for Filipino fight fans to watch the #5 ranked bantamweight in the world every time he steps foot in the cage.
Fernandez will take on a dangerous opponent tonight as he defends the world bantamweight championship against the unbeaten Dae Hwan Kim. Yes, the same guy who defeated Kevin Belingon during Rise of Heroes.
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ONEFC 23: Warrior’s Way
Mall of Asia Arena, Pasay City
Fight Card and Weigh-in Results
World Bantamweight Championship
Bibiano Fernandez (134 lbs) – Brazil, 16-3 vs. Dae Hwan Kim (134 lbs) – Korea, 10-0-1
Heavyweight Bout
Brandon Vera (243 lbs) – Philippines, 12-7 1NC vs. Igor Subora (223 lbs) – Ukraine, 5-1
Lightweight Bout
Timofey Nastyukhin (154 lbs) – Russia, 7-1 vs. Eduard Folayang (154 lbs) – Philippines, 14-4
Light Heavyweight Bout
Roger Gracie (205 lbs) – Brazil, 6-2 vs. James McSweeney (205 lbs) – United Kingdom, 20-10
Bantamweight Bout
Koetsu Okazaki (134 lbs) – Japan, 10-3-1 vs. Kevin Belingon (134 lbs) – Philippines, 12-4
Featherweight Bout
Herbert Burns (145 lbs*) – Brazil, 4-0 vs. Honorio Banario (145 lbs) – Philippines, 8-4
Light Heavyweight Bout
Jake Butler (205 lbs) – USA, 4-1 vs. Sylvain Potard (205 lbs) – France, 6-3
Flyweight Bout
Dejdamrong sor Amnuaysirichoke (124 lbs) – Thailand, 3-0 vs. Rene Catalan (125 lbs) – Philippines, 0-1 1NC
Women’s Flyweight Bout
Walaa Abbas (125 lbs) – Egypt, 2-1 vs. Ana Julaton (125 lbs) – Philippines, 1-1
Women’s Atomweight Bout
Tharoth Sam (105 lbs) – Cambodia, 2-0 vs. Jujeath Nagaowa (105 lbs) – Philippines, 1-0
*Burns in his 1st attempt weighed 146 lbs. He was able to make weight in his 2nd attempt.
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