Pinoy MMA Stars Kelly, Banario, Docyogen set to shine in ONE FC
KUALA LUMPUR, MALAYSIA - One thing is for certain: before ONE FC Return of Warriors ends, there will be a Filipino with a ONE FC Featherweight Championship belt hanging from his waist.
The question is: which Igorot warrior will come out on top?
The Honorio Banario – Eric Kelly fight will be a championship clash of Pinoys that serves as the main event of the fight card on Saturday night here at Stadium Putra.
Although both are Filipinos, Kelly, nicknamed “The Natural” will have a bit of the home court advantage. He is currently living here in KL, working and training with Muay Fit.
Kelly, 30, has taken a circuitous route to Asian MMA stardom, rising from humble beginnings in Baguio to become one of the Philippines' most feared fighters.
The former National Team Wushu Fighter used to work as a taxi driver, sayote farmer, bodyguard, and stuntman before devoting himself to Mixed Martial Arts.
In his three-year career Kelly has amassed a perfect 9-0 record. Pinoy fight fans last saw him take out American UFC legend Jens “Lil Evil” Pulver in ONE FC Pride of a Nation last August, winning via TKO.
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He faces Banario, 23 also from the Baguio area. The Team Lakay standout dubbed “The Rock” stakes his 7-1 MMA record against Kelly, with five of those seven triumphs coming via submission.
This will only be his second fight outside of the Philippines. The one time he fought overseas was also his only loss, a defeat to Korean Bae Young Kwon via submission in Jakarta in February of 2012.
While Kelly is a natural Featherweight, Banario has fought previously at Lightweight, or 155 pounds.
In the official weigh-in Banario reportedly first tipped the scales four pounds above the 145 lb limit, but ONE FC video host Franco Mabanta says that it was likely much more. He needed a few more hours to cut the weight.
Kelly was also overweight by a pound but shed the excess baggage much sooner.
The winner of the bout joins Korean Soo Chul Kim (Bantamweight) and Japan's Kotetsu “No Face” Boku in ONE FC's roster of Champions.
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The final undercard also features a Filipino, Rey “The Punisher” Docyogen. The 29-year-old Flyweight, also from Team Lakay, will face off against Japanese veteran southpaw Shinichi Kojima.
Docyogen is an architecture graduate from the University of the Cordilleras and is fighting for the first time outside of the Philippines. He boasts a perfect record of ten wins against nary a loss.
Kojima, 33, is the more experienced fighter, accumulating a 12-4-5 win-loss-draw slate using the Shooto wrestling style.
The winner of this match is assured a shot at the inaugural ONE FC Flyweight (125 lbs) Championship title later on in the year.
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While Eduard Folayang will not be featured in this fight card, his conqueror from URCC, Hawaiian Lowen Tynanes, is scheduled to combat South African Muay Thai expert Vuyisile Colossa.
Tynanes defeated Folayang in Manila last month via TKO (Doctor's stoppage) when an elbow cut Folayang's head, causing blood to gush out uncontrollably.
Folayang had earlier decisioned Colossa, so the young American, who is one-fourth Filipino, could be favored.
Another fight pits Indonesian Leo Krishna versus British-born Malaysian TV star Peter Davis in the Lightweight division.
ONE FC is holding a Bantamweight Gran Prix tournament over several fight cards, and on Saturday Thanh Vu of Vietnam squares off against Malaysian Raymond Tan. The winner of the Gran Prix will challenge Soo Chul Kim for his belt.
A live Pay-Per-View video streaming of the card, which will start at 7pm Philippine time, is available at www.onefc.livesport.tv. Eventually the entire event will be aired on either Fox Sports or Sky Sports on cable.
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