Rivalries: Eduard Folayang

Eduard Folayang has been a constant on the One Championship roster for nearly a decade.

The two-time lightweight titleholder will attempt to put an end to a career-worst three-fight losing streak when he toes the line against “The Ultimate Fighter China” winner Lipeng Zhang in the One Championship “Battleground 2” main event on Friday at Singapore Indoor Stadium in Kallang, Singapore. Folayang, 37, has delivered eight of his 22 professional victories by knockout, technical knockout or submission. However, he recorded his last win on Nov. 8, 2019, when he earned a technical unanimous decision over Tsogookhuu Amarsanaa at “Masters of Fate.”

As Folayang makes final preparations for his showdown with Zhang, a look at a few of the rivalries that have helped shape his journey thus far:

Shinya Aoki

Folayang disposed of the Japanese superstar with third-round punches, as he laid claim to the One Championship lightweight crown in the “Defending Honor” headliner on Nov. 11, 2016 at Singapore Indoor Stadium in Kallang, Singapore. Aoki succumbed to blows 41 seconds into Round 3, his nine-fight winning streak at an end. All went according to plan for “Tobikan Judan” for the better part of two rounds, as he ran his challenger through a series of clinches and takedowns. However, Folayang weathered his submission advances, and by the end of the second round had begun to turn the tide through a sustained attack on the champion’s legs and body. He sprawled out of a takedown at the start of Round 3, blasted Aoki with a knee to the face and pinned him at the base of the cage. Another knee to the head was followed by an unending flurry of right hands that prompted referee Yuji Shimada to act. The loss was Aoki’s first in more than four years. He exacted a measure revenge in the two rematches that followed, as he choked Folayang unconscious with an arm-triangle on March 31, 2019 and submitted him with an armbar on April 28, 2021.

Martin Nguyen

Nguyen etched his name in the history books and did so in stirring fashion, as he became One Championship’s first simultaneous two-division titleholder and punched out Folayang to capture the lightweight crown in the “Legends of the World” main event on Nov. 10, 2017 at the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay, Philippines. Folayang succumbed to blows 2:20 into Round 1. Nguyen, who entered the cage as the promotion’s featherweight champion, countered a spinning attack from Folayang with a clean hook and mopped up what was left with follow-up punches, forcing referee Olivier Coste to intervene on the Team Lakay export’s behalf.

Amir Khan

Folayang reclaimed the One Championship lightweight title when he was awarded a five-round unanimous decision over the Evolve MMA product in the “Conquest of Champions” co-feature on Nov. 23, 2018 at the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay, Philippines. After a somewhat-tepid start, Folayang wowed the crowd with diverse offensive output, utilizing everything from flashy spinning attacks and acrobatic kicks to powerful slams and devastating clinch work. He was at peak intensity in the second round, where he connected with a multiple spinning back elbows and turned a flying knee attempt from Khan into a takedown and follow-up ground-and-pound. Folayang unleashed strikes from various angles, opened a cut under his counterpart’s right and continued to add to his lead until their 25-minute battle was over.

A-Sol Kwon

Maniacal aggression and superior firepower carried Folayang to a unanimous decision over the South Korean standout, as he made a successful promotional debut in the One Championship “Champion vs. Champion” main event on Sept. 3, 2011 at Singapore Indoor Stadium in Kallang, Singapore. All three cageside judges sided with the Team Lakay rep, who paired repeated leg kicks with thudding multi-punch volleys to the head. Folayang established himself with a strong first round but emerged from it with a visibly broken nose, perhaps the result of an inadvertent head butt. However, he paid no mind to the damage or the blood streaming from a cut nearly his right eye, the wound having been opened in the early stages Round 2. Instead, “Landslide” pressed forward, forced Kwon to fight off of his back foot and slowly but surely increased his frustration levels. Folayang continued to exploit his advantages in the third round, where he piled up points with kicks to the body and legs, cut loose with power punches upstairs and withstood a violent exchange in which both men appeared to be rocked.