Edward Kelly in Beijing, China for ONE Fight Night. Photo by Tristan Tamayo/INQUIRER.net
BEIJING—Edward Kelly hopes to hit two birds with one stone when he makes his return inside the ONE Championship cage on Saturday in ONE: Age of Dragons at Cadillac Arena here.
Kelly takes on hometown bet Tang Kai in a featherweight fight where the Team Lakay veteran aims to mark the start of a winning trend and sustain his squad’s strong showing.
“That’s what I want to happen and I will do my best to do just that,” Kelly told INQUIRER.net in Filipino Friday during the fighters’ media availability at Double Tree Hotel.
#ONE: Kelly hopes to get back on track and finally start a winning streak after an up-and-down last eight fights. | @MarkGiongcoINQ pic.twitter.com/bfRFpCj21i
— INQUIRER Sports (@INQUIRERSports) November 15, 2019
Kelly has had an up-and-down campaign in his last eight fights, including a technical decision loss to Xie Bin three months ago.
Kelly is one of three Filipinos fighting in the undercard and the lone Team Lakay member.
Team Lakay went 3-0 earlier this month in ONE: Masters of Fate with strawweight champion Joshua Pacio, former lightweight king Eduard Folayang and ex-flyweight titleholder Geje Eustaquio victorious against their respective foes.
Kelly describes Kai as someone who is willing to engage, the kind of fighter he prefers going up against in the middle of the ring.
ONE: Edward Kelly, one of 3 Filipinos fighting in the undercard of 'Age of Dragons' at Cadillac Arena in Beijing, sees a striking match with China’s Tang Kai in their featherweight fight. | @MarkGiongcoINQ pic.twitter.com/SjRxEzzPNI
— INQUIRER Sports (@INQUIRERSports) November 15, 2019
“My opponent is a well-known striker and knockout artist but I know that I also punch and kick as hard so it’s just a matter of who’s going to hit the other first,” he said.
“I think he’s going to trade strikes and I’m excited to trade with him. If I have a chance to take him down I would go for it.”
Also competing in the same card are Filipino strawweights Jeremy Miado and Ramon Gonzales, who are also facing Chinese foes.
Miado clashes with Miao Li Tao while Gonzales faces Hexi Getu.