ONE Championship will hold "ONE: Dawn of Heroes" on August 2, 2019 at the SM Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City, Metro Manila, Philippines. In the main event, Folayang and Alvarez will battle it out in the lightweight division.
Training out of Team Lakay in Baguio City, Folayang has dreamed of a bout with Alvarez ever since the latter signed with ONE Championship in 2018. The Filipino fighter said he is ready for an intense battle with his American opponent.
"He deserves the best challenge and I'm going to give it to him," Folayang said of Alvarez. "I'm here to represent Asia in this battle between the East and the West."
Both Folayang and Alvarez are out for redemption. They are also both looking at making a run at the ONE Lightweight World Title currently held by Christian "The Warrior" Lee, 21, of Singapore.
"I was very excited when I heard the news that Eddie Alvarez was next for me," Folayang said. "He's one of the most well-known martial artists in the world. In many ways, he's a legend."
"Sharing the ring with him is my honor and privilege," the Team Lakay fighter continued. "At the same time, I don't plan on backing down."
On March 31, 2019, Shinya "Tobikan Judan" Aoki, 36, of Japan redeemed the ONE Lightweight World Championship belt from Folayang. The Japanese MMA veteran knocked out the Filipino fighter at "ONE: A New Era" at the Ryogoku Kokugikan in Tokyo, Japan.
Also at "ONE: A New Era," Alvarez made his ONE Championship debut. He was knocked out by Timofey Nastyukhin, 29, of Russia.
Meanwhile, here is a clip featuring Folayang:
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