Kevin Belingon Is Competing For More Than A World Title At ONE: CENTURY
Kevin ”The Silencer” Belingon believes there is more than just the ONE Bantamweight World Title at stake when he faces Bibiano “The Flash” Fernandes at ONE: CENTURY.
When the Filipino hero faces his Brazilian arch rival for the fourth time on 13 October, he believes Team Lakay can recement itself as the number one mixed martial arts team in Asia once again.
The Baguio City collective was unquestionably head and shoulders above everyone else on the continent when it finished 2018 with four ONE World Title belts within its walls.
However, in the first three months of this year, Joshua “The Passion” Pacio, Geje “Gravity” Eustaquio, Belingon, and Eduard “Landslide” Folayang lost their strawweight, flyweight, bantamweight, and lightweight belts, respectively.
Team Lakay got back on track in April when Pacio defeated Yosuke Saruta in a rematch to reclaim the gold, and “The Silencer” is using that win as motivation when he returns to action at the Ryogoku Kokugikan in Tokyo, Japan.
“This is so important for us. If we get the belt back, I think it will prove that we’re number one in Asia,” says the 31-year-old.
“I am inspired by Joshua because he got his belt back. Now I have to get mine back and bring it home to Baguio.”
Belingon has faced Fernandes three times before in World Title bouts, and though he has come out on the wrong side of the result twice – by disqualification due to an accidental foul the last time they met – he is full of confidence.
He has spent so much time preparing to face the record-breaking bantamweight king, and actually competing against him, he will not come up against any surprises when they lock horns again.
“More than ever, I am familiar with Bibiano – his style, the way he moves. I already know what to expect and what I’ll do in our fourth match,” he explains.
“For our game plan, I’m leaving it to coach Mark Sangiao so I can effectively counter his striking and takedowns.”
The former ONE Bantamweight World Champion may not be willing to give too much away about his strategy, but by reading between the lines, you can expect him to be aggressive.
After a split-decision win last November, and an anticlimactic conclusion in March, Belingon is desperate to prove, once and for all, that he is the best competitor in his weight class.
There is only one way to do that.
“It is hard to tell how it will end, but I’m looking for a knockout so that all talks will be settled,” he adds.
“It’s hard to leave this to the judges because there would be doubts there. I have to get that knockout win.”
