Team Lakay fighters have delivered the goods every time they have competed in the ONE Championship circle. Asia's premier MMA promotion will be putting four of them in ONE: Winter Warriors II happening on December 17th at the Singapore Indoor Stadium to end the year with a bang.
Coach Mark Sangiao will have his hands full as he prepares all four of his fighters for their respective bouts. This is the biggest delegation that Team Lakay will be bringing to foreign soil for a ONE Championship event.
Two of those fighters, Kevin Belingon and Danny Kingad, will be looking to get another title shot in their respective divisions.
Get the latest updates on One Championship Rankings at Sportskeeda and more
Belingon has lost his last three bouts in ONE Championship. The losses came against John Lineker and reigning bantamweight champion Bibiano Fernandes twice. 'The Silencer' is set to fight South Korean fighter Kwon Won Il.
Sangaio shared his prediction for this bout and expects to see a lot of blood inside the ONE Championship cage. In an online media interview, Sangiao said:
"It's going to be bloody. I can see Kevin's preparation for this fight. The fire in him came back and his passion for training. I see Kwon will have a tough time with him. It would be bloody and someone could get knocked out."
Danny Kingad is the second-ranked flyweight in ONE Championship behind Adriano Moraes and Demetrious Johnson. He will take on Kairat Akhmetov in a much-anticipated encounter. Discussing the intriguing matchup, Sangiao said:
"This is going to be technical. wrestler vs wrestler. We saw Kairat’s last fights and he is also shifting to striking. It will boil down to who has a better game plan. It is going to be 60-40 that we will win the fight."
Weighing in on the debuting fighters' chances in their ONE Championship bouts
With Kingad and Belingon looking for a title shot in ONE: Winter Warriors II, two more Team Lakay fighters will compete at the event and look to make a statement in their promotional debuts, Stephen Loman and Jhanlo Sangiao.
Stephen Loman is the former Brave Combat Federation bantamweight champion. 'The Sniper' is going up against third-ranked bantamweight Yusup Saadulaev in his ONE Championship debut and coach Mark Sangiao sees Loman facing a good challenge.
Speaking to AsianMMA.com, Mark Sangiao had this to say:
"Stephen will be having a good match against a great grappler. I think if Yousuf can’t control this fight, there could be a knockout coming from Stephen's side."
Watch the full interview below:
His son, Jhanlo Sangiao, is one of the most exciting prospects to come into ONE Championship. The 18-year-old will take on Indonesian fighter Paul Lumihi, who is currently on a three-fight losing streak. His father is confident that 'The Machine' can secure the win if he keeps himself composed. He said:
"This is an effect that your son is fighting. If he can control the pressure, I see him having a good performance and bring home the big win."