Adiwang eyes fresh approach to bout vs Mongolian foe

Lito Adiwang has won six of his seven matches in the Asian promotion so far. —ONE CHAMPIONSHIP

Lito Adiwang made it his mission to reinforce the belief that Team Lakay’s striking is still the best in the region.

He was given a chance to do that during the summer, but a positive COVID-19 test result upended his plans and kept him from competition.

The Team Lakay strawweight will have another chance this month, and he promises to be smarter when he enters the ONE Championship circle anew.

“The biggest thing I learned during the wait was having an additional approach to each match,” he told the Inquirer.

“Back then, I used to just focus on one or two things going into a match. I stepped out [of that] and saw the big picture; I realized I was too simple, when in fact I can do so much more.”

Eight months removed from his last fight, Adiwang will face Hexigetu of Mongolia on Sept. 24 in Singapore, looking to annex a victory to his impressive second-round knockout of Namiki Kawahara last January.

In the “Revolution” showpiece, Adiwang joins two other Filipinos in Roel Rosauro and teammate Joshua Pacio, the division’s reigning champion, in a card that will also feature two other title bouts.

The 28-year-old fighter out of Baguio has been nothing short of impressive throughout his young career in ONE. He has won six of his seven matches in the promotion, with the lone loss being a controversial split decision.

Adiwang said he is fully committed on becoming better, hence the drive to become a well-rounded fighter.

“I thought the best way for me to grow is to accept my flaws,” said Adiwang, who once swept the promotion’s developmental circuit.