Boxing Champions Look to Raise Pinay MMA Banner in MOA Arena Once Again

In less than a week, ONE Fighting Championship will be staging what is likely to be the biggest local mixed martial arts event of the year when it brings ONE FC: Warriors Way to the Mall of Asia Arena. 

ONE FC: Warrior's Way

December 5^th looks to be an explosive night of fights as popular Pinoy fighters Eduard Folayang, Kevin Belingon, Rene Catalan, and former ONE FC Featherweight Champion Honorio Banario will be gracing the ONE FC cage once again. Highly regarded heavyweight and Fil-Am mixed martial artist Brandon Vera will also be making his promotional debut on the card.

"The Hurricane" and "Bad Girl" at ONE FC: Rise of Heroes. Photos property of ONE FC.

Not at all to be out done, returning Pinay fighters are also looking to earn second pro-MMA wins while electrifying the MOA Arena crowd. Successful boxers turned mixed martial artists Ana “The Hurricane” Julaton and Jujeath “Bad Girl” Nagaowa are also scheduled for bouts at Warrior’s Way.

Nagaowa in action. Photo property of ONE FC.

Nagaowa, a former WBC Asia Atomweight Champion, made her pro-MMA debut during ONE FC: Rise of Heroes, held last May at the MOA Arena. “Bad Girl” began her MMA career with a win over Jeet Toshi of India, whom she stopped via TKO in the second round. Jujeath aims to make it 2-0 at MOA Arena, and in MMA over all, when she meets Tharoth Sam.

Hailing from Cambodia, Sam is also undefeated at 2-0, with the renowned Kun Khmer fighter earning her latest victory via arm bar. While the styles vary, the bout looks to be a strike fest, with the two women looking to impose their wills and respective disciplines over the other.

Julaton throwing a left hook in her pro-MMA debut. Photo property of ONE FC.

Similar to Nagaowa, Ana Julaton also made her pro MMA debut at Rise of Heroes, earning a TKO victory against Egyptian kickboxer Aya Saeid Saber. Julaton then however, came up on the wrong end of a split decision against Ann “Athena” Osman at ONE FC: Reign of Champions, which was held last August in Dubai.

On December 5th, the former WBO and IBA Super Bantamweight champion will be meeting Walaa Abbas from Egypt, and will be looking to get back to her winning ways with the help of the home crowd. Abbas (2-1) on the other hand, will try to continue her current momentum, as the former national Egyptian kickboxing champion had recently racked up two consecutive wins.

To support these Pinay fighters and catch all the high stakes action live, tickets to ONE FC: Warrior’s way can be purchased via SM Tickets. Fans around Asia can also catch the action live on Fox Sports 1, while those in other areas can watch the live online stream at ONEFC.com.

Rich Franklin in the Philippines to Promote ONE FC: Warrior's Way

Former Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Middleweight Champion and current ONE Fighting Championship (ONE FC) Vice President is visiting the Philippines to do promotional work for ONE FC: Warrior's Way. The upcoming ONE FC fight card is scheduled to go down this December 5th at the SM Mall of Asia Arena.

Promotional ad for Ace's appearance at the Asia Pacific BJJ Int'l.

Photo from the tourney appearance courtesy of Rich's official Facebook fan page.

Rich's first appearance was at last Saturday's Asia Pacific Brzilian Jiu Jitsu International held at the Mall of Asia's Music Hall. I was fortunate enough to meet the MMA legend and get a photo and have him sign a couple autographs:

Apart form the appearance at the BJJ tournament, "Ace" has, or will be, making appearances on Solar Sports Desk, Fox Sports Philippines, and DojoDrifter.com.

To learn more about Rich and his itinerary leading up to ONE FC: Warriors Way, follow him on Twitter at @RichFranklin. For more on the upcoming ONE FC event, visit www.ONEFC.com or view the complete fight week schedule here. 

ONE Fighting Championship Releases Schedule of Events Leading Up to ONE FC: Warriors Way

One Fighting Championship, Asia's largest MMA organization with a 90% market share, just released its schedule of related events that lead up the next ONE Fight Night to be held in the Philippines. ONE FC: Warrior's Way is scheduled to happen on December 5, 2014 at the SM Mall of Asia Arena.

For the entire week before the fight card, the promotion has schedules a series of events which can be attended by press and MMA fans in the country. Holding their first show in the Philippines in August of 2012, next month's ONE FC fight week is the first time the promotion has such a lead up towards a ONE FC fight night in the country.

Below is schedule courtesy of the ONE FC Official Facebook page:

For more information, interested parties can visit www.ONEFC.com. Tickets to ONE FC: Warrior's Way can be purchased online at via SM tickets. The fights can also be viewed live via pay-per-view at http://onefc.com/livestream. 

MMA Legend Dan "The Beast" Severn to Hold Seminar in Marikina City

Dan Severn, an Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Hall-of-Famer and considered one of the pioneers of MMA, will pay the Philippines a visit and hold an MMA seminar at The Goat Locker Boxing Gym in Parang, Marikina City. As per the training facility's official Facebook page, "The Beast" will be in town December 6th, conducting a 2 hour MMA seminar, and with an additional 1 hour to sign autographs and take photos with participants.

Severn is mostly known for his time in the early years of the UFC. He, along with other legends such as Royce Gracie and Ken Shamrock, essentially served as the reasons for the rise of the promotion and the sport of MMA itself. On top of being a UFC Hall-of-Famer, he is also the promotion's first and only Triple Crown winner, and was the first competitor to be awarded a UFC title belt.

With a professional MMA record of  101-19-7, Severn's list of notable opponents include Shamrock, Gracie, Josh Barnett, David "Tank" Abbott, Oleg Taktarov, and a young Forrest Griffin. At UFC's Ultimate Ultimate 1995, Severn defeated Paul Valerans, Abbott, and UFC 6 Tournament Champion Taktarov all in the same night to win the tournament title.

For more information on The Beast's appearance and what he will be teaching participating Pinoy fighters, interested parties can visit The Goat Locker's official Facebook page for more information.

Established in January 2011, The Goat Locker Boxing Gym is owned and operated by Ferdinand Abadilla Munsayac. A retired U.S. Navy Chief, Munsayac decided to dedicated his time and money to help the needy.

Known as "Ang gym ng mahirap na may pangarap. Boxing, MMA, muay thai, BJJ, and arnis para sa fighters, dahil sa fighters", the gym has the primary goal of helping young, poverty stricken but skilled fighters develop their craft so they can provide a brighter future for their own families.

While the gym is focused on grass roots training, The Goat Locker also offers its high-level programs to the general public, with the proceeds from the classes used to maintain the operating expenses of the facilities and its scholars.

Two Titles on the Line at PXC's 2014 Year-Ender in the Philippines

Pacific Xtreme Combat (PXC) 46, the promotion's final event in the Philippines for 2014, promises to be one historic night with two title bouts serving as its co-main events. Set to go down this Friday, November 15, at the Ynares Sports Arena in Pasig City, PXC 46 will feature the promotion's Flyweight and Lightweight championships up for grabs in two 5-round affairs.

PXC 46

The PXC Flyweight title will be contested by two Pinoy fighters, with completely different backgrounds. "Iron" Ernesto Montilla, a homegrown talent out of San Pedro, Laguna, battles U.S.-based Pinoy fighter Alvin Cacdac.

Montilla vs. Cacdac

Cacdac (14-10), last saw competition in late 2013 when he won via rear-naked choke, submitting Trevin Jones at PXC 40. Montilla (4-2) on the other hand, last saw action this past May, earning an upset  submission victory over Ale Cale at PXC 43.

With a great deal of momentum coming from both sides, the flyweight battle looks to be a fast paced affair, with both fighters likely looking to add another submission win, and the Flyweight title, to their resume.

Ranillo vs. Kato

For the main event, Glen Ranillo (4-2) will look to put away Japanese competitor Chuji Kato (5-1-1) to secure the Lightweight championship for himself and the home crowd. Ranillo will be looking to take advantage of a rusty Kato, as the former last fought in May, while the former in October of last year. Both are coming of wins, with Ranillo earning a TKO victory in the first round over Reno Remigio at PXC 43, and Kato earning a decision win over Tyrone Jones at PXC 40.

With the stakes high in the weight class considered the most talent laden in all of MMA, the Ynares Arena crowd can expect the lightweight title bout to be a hotly contested affair.



Known to cater to the home crowd of its events, PXC 46 features a Filipino fighter in each fight of the card. Notable names expected to put on a show on November 15th include fan favorite Crisanto Pipitunge, and highly touted Pinay fighter Gina Iniong. Below is the complete card for PXC 46:

PXC 46 Fight Card.

PXC 46 will be held on November 15, 7pm at Ynares Sports Arena in Pasig City. Tickets are available at the venue or can be purchased beforehand at SM Tickets and Ticketworld outlets.