“Whatever best still remains in me” - Eduard Folayang says he’ll turn back the clock in fourth and final match with Shinya Aoki

Filipino MMA legend Eduard Folayang battles Japanese rival Shinya Aoki for the fourth and, possibly, last time later this month. He is making sure that he gets to put up an impressive winning performance.

'Landslide' will take on 'Tobikan Judan' in a featured lightweight MMA clash at ONE 172: Takeru vs. Rodtang on March 23 at the Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan.

It will be the the fourth encounter between the two former lightweight MMA kings, with Aoki holding the lead in their head-to-head matchup at 2-1.

In an interview with The MMA Superfan on YouTube, Eduard Folayang vowed to dig deep and cap his rivalry with Aoki on a winning note.

41-year-old Folayang said:

"For me, I’m just honored that he asked for me, and he did say that I will be his last fight. For me, my contract will end in September, so this could also be my last, but it depends. I’ll just go there and do my best, whatever best still remains in me. I leave it to God on what the next steps could be."

Watch the interview below:

Eduard Folayang first met Aoki in November 2016, where the former defeated the Japanese legend by TKO to become the new ONE lightweight MMA world champion. Aoki then took the next two matches, with the last one coming in April 2021.

Entering ONE 172, Folayang won in his last fight in September 2023 over Singaporean rival Amir Khan.

ONE 172 is available live on pay-per-view via watch.onefc.com.

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Eduard Folayang to gauge where he is at this stage of his career at ONE 172

Eduard Folayang is using his scheduled match at ONE 172 against Shinya Aoki as a gauge of where he is now in his storied career and where to take it thereafter.

He opened up about in the same interview with The MMA Superfan, pointing out that he could not wait to see how things pan out come fight night.

The Lions Nation MMA representative said:

"These are things that only the moment can answer. So, I hope that our countrymen can watch this fight, so that they can share that moment with me and let me decide if I can still fight or if we will call it a career. But we’re a little bit far away from that moment. So, for me, I’m just enjoying the preparation. For me, I just love what I do in the world of mixed martial arts."

Folayang is one of the longest-tenured fighters in ONE Championship, having been part of the promotion since 2011.