Team Lakay fighters are seeing action in “ONE: Winter Warriors II” on Dec. 17, 2021 at the Singapore Indoor Stadium.
Former world champions Kevin Belingon and Danny Kingad will be back after long layoffs, while Stephen Loman and Jhanlo Mark Sangiao are making their ONE Championship debut.
Belingon, the former ONE bantamweight champion, is in for a crucial contest against Kwon Won Il.
Even though the 34-year-old Belingon is still the second ranked bantamweight, he is in dire need of a win if he wants to stay in the title race. Belingon has lost his last three fights—two against rival and current ONE bantamweight champion Bibiano Fernandes and one against former UFC fighter John Lineker.
Kwon, on the other hand, won back-to-back fights against Bruno Pucci and Rui Chen.
Belingon is 20-8, while Kwon is 10-3.
Meanwhile, Kingad faces former ONE flyweight titleholder Kairat Akhmetov.
Kingad is currently rated No. 2 in the flyweight division behind American superstar Demetrious Johnson, while Akhmetov is ranked No. 4 behind Yuya Wakamatsu.
The 26-year-old Kingad is coming off a win over Wei Xie, while Akhmetov won his last three fights against Dae Hwan Kim, Reece McLaren and Hao Bin Ma.
Kingad is 14-2, while Akhmetov is 27-2.
In the meantime, Loman and Sangiao are making their ONE Championship debuts after signing with the organization back earlier this year.
Loman (14-2) faces No. 3 rated bantamweight Yusup Saadulaev (20-5-1), while Sangiao (3-0) squares off with Paul Lumihi (7-5).
“We are honored by the trust that ONE Championship has placed in Team Lakay. This is a huge opportunity for us to close the year on a positive note and we are very proud to represent the Philippines on the biggest global stage of martial arts competition,” Team Lakay head coach Mark Sangiao said. “Our warriors will be going up against a handful of very tough opponents, so it’s not going to be easy. Rest assured that we are working double time in the gym to produce a favorable outcome. Through our hard work and dedication, we will triumph.”