Rivals should be scared of Stephen Loman -Jhanlo Sangiao on his stablemate

Jhanlo Sangiao has hailed his teammate Stephen Loman following his emphatic ONE Championship debut at ONE: Winter Warriors Part II this month. Sangiao and Loman both delivered first-round finishes.

Loman knocked out number three-ranked Yusup Saadulaev in his promotional debut with an explosive overhand left. The former Brave CF fighter is expected to leapfrog the Russian in the rankings and Sangiao believes the rest of the division needs to watch out for 'The Sniper'.

Speaking exclusively to Sportskeeda, Sangiao said,

"Stephen is a beast. He can knock people out, he can wrestle. He's the longest champion in Brave CF. People need to be scared of him. He's better [than Lineker and Fernandes] He gives his best in the gym. If he faces Lineker or Bibiano - I think Stephen will win," Sangiao added.

Team Lakay has a rich history in ONE Championship. In 2018, the Baguio-based outfit boasted world champions across four different divisions. With Loman likely to be awarded a number-one contender fight sometime in 2022, the 29-year-old has an excellent chance of bringing more glory back to the gym.

---

Jhanlo Sangiao has big dreams and aspirations

Alongside Loman, Sangiao could prove to be an explosive addition at bantamweight. At just 19 years old, the son of head coach Mark looks to be a big talent. The young star needed just 1.41 seconds to put away Indonesia's Paul Lumihi with a rear-naked choke. The result extended Sangiao's record to 4-0 and was his third consecutive win using the slick submission.

"I've worked for it since I was a kid. I worked so hard and we got the win. I'm so happy,' said Sangiao. 'Of course I wanted to get that finish. Actually we prepared for it - the rear-naked choke. It was either [going to be] ground and pound or rear- naked choke. I think [it's a speciality]" he added.

Coach Mark Sangiao keeps a close eye on his son's career trajectory and progress. Under his father's expert guidance, it will be interesting to see how quickly the young prodigy returns to action. Sangiao jr. told SK that he would love to have another fight soon. He also mentioned that he used to look up to former ONE lightweight champion, Christian Lee.

Lee certainly set the bar high as a young fighter tearing up the scene in ONE. 'The Warrior' made his promotional debut at 17 before setting the record for most wins and most finishes as well as winning two world titles. If Jhanlo can emulate anything close to that, then Team Lakay have a very special talent on their hands.