Chinese MMA fighter dies ahead of ONE FC bout

MANILA -- Tragedy has befallen the opening of "ONE Championship: Spirit of Champions" set to be held at the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City on Friday evening.

Chinese fighter Yang Jian Bing, who holds a 5-1 mixed martial arts record, died on Friday before his scheduled fight against the Philippines' Geje Eustaquio.

In an official statement, ONE Championship's chief executive Victor Cui announced: "There is nothing more profoundly tragic and sad than when a member of the ONE Championship family, current or past, passes away.

"Our thoughts and prayers are with the family and loved ones of Yang Jian Bing. We will work closely with the family and offer all the support they need in any way we can during this very difficult time. Yang passed away this afternoon."

Yang, a native of China, was hospitalized at the San Juan De Dios Hospital in Pasay City, after collapsing Thursday morning.

He passed away 12:06 p.m. the next day due to cardiopulmonary failure.

Yang was 21 years old.

According to ONE Championship, formal hospital medical reports and procedures are still being carried out.

Cui assured that Yang received the best medical care possible while ONE officials continuously updated his family directly from his hospital bedside.

Yang competed in the ONE flyweight division. His last bout for ONE was in June.

“I want to thank all sports fans around the world for their concern, thoughts and prayers. At this time, we appreciate everyone respecting the Yang family's privacy as they mourn the loss of their beloved son and brother," said Cui.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Striegl looks to finish Australian foe in first round

MANILA, Philippines - His opponent may have changed, but for Filipino-American MMA fighter Mark Striegl, his mindset remains the same.

Striegl was initially supposed to face off against Australia's Jordan Lucas in the co-main event of ONE Championship: Spirit of Champions on December 11 at the Mall of Asia Arena, but Lucas was forced to withdraw from the bout due to an eye injury sustained in training.

Another Australian, Reece McLaren, stepped in to take his place, much to the relief of Striegl.

"It was a little less than two weeks before the fight," Striegl said, when asked when he found out that he had a new opponent. "So it was certainly nerve-wracking."

He holds no ill will towards Lucas – "That happens in this sport," he said of the injury – but is grateful that ONE Championship was able to find a replacement in time.

"I guess I was destined to fight an Australian," he joked Tuesday at the KMA Fitness Gym in Makati. "I'm just thankful that I can still fight in Manila, in the co-main event."

McLaren, like Lucas, is a champion in a local Australian organization, and Striegl says they are "equally dangerous." Nevertheless, his outlook remains unchanged.

"I always look to finish my opponent in the first round," he said. "You'll never see me in a boring fight. So I'm looking to take him out in the first round."

"It's a different opponent, so there are definitely some things you have to change up," he also said. "But a fight is a fight, and that's always my outlook on it. You go into a fight, you have to adapt inside the cage."

"You can only drill and do so many things. At the end of the day, it's just reaction, action, and reaction. I'll be ready."

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Fil-Am fighter Striegl stops foe in ONE debut

Askren-Santos ends in 'no contest'

MANILA, Philippines -- Filipino-American fighter Mark ''Mugen'' Striegl had an impressive ONE Championship debut by dominating erstwhile unbeaten American Casey Suire on Friday night.

Electrified by the crowd at the MOA Arena, Striegl showed world-class wrestling by taking down Suire early in the first round of Valor of Champions' co-main event.

The Fil-Am eventually secured his opponent's back and from there it was just a matter of time before he was able to sink in a rear naked choke, forcing Suire to submit.

Two other Pinoys won their matches against their respective foes.

Muay Thai expert Eugene Toquero showed he has grappling skills too by dominating Indonesia's Brianata Rosadhi on the ground. When repeated rear naked choke attempts didn't work, he punished his opponents with sharp elbows. Referee Joey Lepiten then stepped in to stop the bout.

Filipino fighter Edward Kelly, for his part, was able to submit fellow Pinoy Jimmy Yabo also in the first round. He started the match with high velocity kicks and later brought the fight to the ground. There, he was able to trap Yabo’s neck, forcing his opponent to tap the mat.

Team Lakay’s Geje Eustaquio was not as lucky against Anatpong Bunrad, who scored an upset victory in a close fight. Eustaquio was dominating Bunrad early in the match, but the latter was able to secure a couple of takedowns. This proved to be the difference as judges awarded Bunrad with a split decision.

In the main event, the ONE welterweight title bout between champion Ben ''Funky'' Askren and challenger Luis Santos ended in a no contest.

Askren accidentally poked Santos in the eye during their exchange just when the action was beginning to heat up.

After a careful review of the exchange verified the eye poke, referee Olivier Coste gave Santos five minutes to recover. However, after five minutes, Santos' vision was still impaired, forcing the conclusion of the fight.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Belingon shines for Team Lakay in ONE FC

MANILA, Philippines -- Kevin "The Silencer" Belingon saved what could have been a disastrous night for Team Lakay by hammering out a dominant victory against former bantamweight contender Koetsu Okazaki in "ONE FC: Warrior's Way" at the Mall of Asia (MOA) Arena on Friday.

Belingon banked on lightning-fast kicks and quick hands to force the former Shooto champion on his heels for most part of their 3-round fight.

The judges awarded the Filipino with a unanimous decision win.

His victory was the shining light for Team Lakay, which sustained two defeats in fighters Honorio Banario and Eduard Folayang.

Banario was forced to tap out when he was caught with a rear-naked choke by undefeated Brazilian Herbert Burns. Folayang, meanwhile, got knocked out when he engagged in a slugfest with heavy handed Russian Timofey Nastyukhin.

After spending most of the first round feeling out his opponent, Belingon connected with a shot to the head that sent Okazaki reeling in the cage. They eventually landed on the ground where the Filipino pummeled the Japanese with hammer fists.

Belingon pressed the action in the second stanza and forced Okazaki to engage. While the Japanese was having some success connecting his overhand rights, Belingon fired back with legs kicks and fists that resulted in 2 knockdowns.

The Silencer once again forced Okazaki's back to the ground in the final round when he landed serious blows and several soccer kicks.

The Japanese nearly caught him with a choke while on the mat but Belingon outmaneuvered Okazaki and was able to get a partial mount. From there, he fed Okazaki with fists and elbows until the final bell.

It was a fitting rebound for Belingon, who lost to Dae Hwan Kim prior this fight.

In his 146-pound catchweight bout, former featherweight champion Banario had a difficult battle against undefeated Burns. Banario made the mistake of going for a takedown against Burns, who is a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu expert. Immediately, the Brazilian went for the Filipino's back for a rear naked choke.

"The Rock" valiantly tried to fight his way out of the choke, but Burns was able to get his arm deep into Banario's neck to force the Filipino to tap out, 1:01 minute left in the 1st round.

It was Banario's fourth-straight defeat since losing the featherweight title to Koji Oishi in 2013.

Folayang, meanwhile, opened his fight by connecting a looping left to the face, but Nastyukhin showed that he could give as he could take. Seconds later, they were throwing haymakers at each other.

Nastyukhin, however, was connecting more. He later sprang with a flying knee that hit Folayang's chin. The Filipino went down and was hit with a soccer kick to the side of the head.

The referee saw enough and immediately stopped the bout.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Pacquiao now a One FC shareholder

MANILA, Philippines -- Filipino boxing icon Manny Pacquiao is now a shareholder of mixed martial arts company One Fighting Championship (One FC), according to a Yahoo! Sports report.

One FC chief executive Victor Cui told Yahoo! Sports reporter Kevin Iole that Pacquiao purchased "an undisclosed number of shares" in the company.

"There are tons of reasons why I'm excited about this. Obviously, Manny Pacquiao is a global sports icon, and having him as part of our organization as a shareholder and promoting One FC and promoting the sport is huge for the sport in the region," Cui told Iole.

Cui revealed that Pacquiao even tried on a pair of MMA gloves, and was delighted to find out that they were lighter than boxing gloves.

"He said to me, 'Man, someone could get hurt with the power of my punches if I could wear these,'" Cui related.

The executive also described Pacquiao as a "relatively new MMA fan."

One FC's popularity has steadily risen in the Philippines, with local MMA fighters like Eduard Folayang and other members of Team Lakay seeing action in the promotion's fight cards.

Recently, former women's boxing champion Ana Julaton also made her One FC debut, while former UFC contender Brandon Vera, a Filipino-American, also recently signed a contract with One FC.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com