MARVIN Somodio, lead assistant for Hall of Fame coach Freddie Roach, believes old friend Eduard Folayang still has what it takes to regain an MMA title.
The 39-year-old Folayang was able to connect with Somodio during a recent visit to Wild Card Boxing Gym in Los Angeles.
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“I believe he can still compete at a high level. When we were spending time on the mitts, the fire is still there. I think because of his age, I’m of the opinion that he just needs to train correctly for his fights,” he said.
Folayang suffered losses in his last five MMA fights.
Somodio and Folayang shared a classroom at Baguio City National High School in the 90s. Somodio went on to become a boxer then trainer, while Folayang studied to become a teacher but quit to pursue a career in martial arts.
“He and I just went our separate paths. It came as a surprise to me that he was practicing wushu. When we were in college, he was already doing wushu, then he became a Southeast Asian Games champion,” said Somodio of his friend, who also went on to become One Championship lightweight champion.
“At the time, I already gave up boxing and was working as a coach. It made me really happy to see someone become so successful in their field, especially if it was a good friend.”
Folayang still hopes to extend his career, and Somodio says based on what he saw in training, he thinks his friend could still fight on.
“He can’t overtrain anymore. He has a lot left to learn, which is why I applaud [Folayang] for visiting different gyms and knowing more about the different styles here in the US. Learning never stops. If I’m basing it on his abilities, I think he can definitely keep doing it.”
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