Eduard Folayang on brutal loss: My journey doesn’t end here

Eduard Folayang vows he will bounce back. Photo from ONE CHAMPIONSHIP

MANILA, Philippines—Eduard Folayang is no stranger to bouncing back from bad losses.

He’s done it twice before with both occasions he wound up winning the ONE lightweight world title.

And the Filipino star has no doubt he would be able to redeem himself and reign once again.

“I know I’m not done yet. This is just the beginning of a third chapter that will be written and I’m excited to write one again,” Folayang told Filipino scribes at his hotel room hours after losing the lightweight crown to Shinya Aoki Sunday in Tokyo, Japan.

Eduard Folayang says he’s not done yet. | @MarkGiongcoINQ pic.twitter.com/BOixwVgJqq

— INQUIRER Sports (@INQUIRERSports) April 3, 2019

In 2014, Folayang took a brutal first round loss to Timofey Nastyukhin, who hit him with a flying knee.

But that loss only paved way for Folayang’s journey to winning the lightweight belt for the first time in 2016 when he stopped Aoki in the third round of their first title bout.

Folayang won four straight fights after losing to Nastyukhin but he stumbled upon another road block in 2017 when he got knocked out by Martin Nguyen to yield the lightweight title.

Then, he went on another streak and recaptured the belt to become a two-time lightweight world champion.

“I’ve experienced it all and I’ve learned a lot. But the journey doesn’t end here,” Folayang said.

“What’s good about this setback is it will make me feel more motivated to train and improve and someday be a specialist like Shinya. We have the opportunity to do it.”