ONE: Folayang still wants crack at Akiyama

FILE – Eduard Folayang during ONE: Fire and Fury in Manila. Photo by Tristan Tamayo/INQUIRER.net

MANILA, Philippines—Eduard Folayang is on the worst slump of his career losing five of his last six bouts but that is not  stopping the former ONE World lightweight champion from eyeing the biggest prize in his division.

Team Lakay’s senior said wants to fight fellow veteran Yoshihiro Akiyama then take a crack at young champion Christian Lee.

“If given the chance to face him, of course I’d want to test him. I haven’t faced him before and I want to see how I fare against him,” said Folayang. “Maybe in the proper time, maybe we’ll cross paths, and it will be an honor to finally face him.”

Folayang and Akiyama were supposed to fight each other at ONE on TNT IV in April but the UFC veteran pulled out of the card after suffering an injury in training.

Akiyama’s absence made way for the trilogy fight between Folayang and Japanese star Shinya Aoki in a fight that the Filipino lost via armbar in the first round.

Folayang (22-11) said that improving his record is not just the one he is after when he fights Akiyama.

“If that happens, I know I’ll be the sexier man after that match,” said Folayang.

Then there’s his wish of fighting against the 23-year-old Lee, who’s 14 years the junior of Folayang.

“It’s still the champion. I still want to test myself against him in the future. I know that I am not in the position to call him out now, but still my eyes are on him,” said Folayang. “I’ve seen how much Christian Lee has improved and grown through the years. I’m really impressed with how easily he transitioned from featherweight to lightweight, and from the tough opposition that he’s faced, he showed what he can truly do.”