Eduard Folayang says fourth installment vs. Shinya Aoki will come down to finer details: "We know each other so well"

On March 23 at ONE 172, legendary MMA fighters Eduard Folayang and Shinya Aoki will renew their rivalry inside the ring as they will meet for the fourth time inside the Saitama Super Arena in Japan.

Folayang is looking forward to even his score with Aoki, and during his pre-fight interview with ONE Championship, the former two-time ONE lightweight MMA world champion says that this latest match will come down to execution and small details, as he stated:

"Given that we know each other so well now, it's all a matter of who's gonna execute and impose their gameplan in the fight."

'The Landslide' and 'Tobikan Judan' have developed a great friendship outside the cage and are willing to set aside this for this upcoming duel. Both athletes are also coming off victories from their MMA matches, with Folayang knocking out Amir Khan in September 2023 and Aoki submitting John Lineker in January 2024.

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Eduard Folayang shares his main goal at this point of his professional career

The Lions Nation MMA representative has already piled up the accolades and has nothing to prove left, which is why his main focus right now is to give inspiration to other aspiring athletes who also want to be a world champion.

According to the 41-year-old veteran, he aims to continue imparting the values of the sport as he told the promotion in a recent interview:

"My goal at this point is simple. I want to continue to do what I love. I want to continue to inspire more people in this sport, I hope to continue to share the values of martial arts to the younger generation, and that pushes me to keep moving forward."

Fans can purchase the ONE 172: Takeru vs. Rodtang PPV card via watch.onefc.com. The event will take place inside the legendary Saitama Super Arena in Japan on March 23.