Former ONE Featherweight World Champion Honorio “The Rock” Banario seeks to erase the memory of a heartbreaking defeat as he shares the ONE Championship cage with South Korean opponent Dae Sung Park.
Both men are set to collide on the undercard of ONE: CONQUEST OF CHAMPIONS, which takes place at the Mall Of Asia Arena in Manila, Philippines on Friday, November 23.
Banario is coming off a first-round submission loss at the hands of Singaporean contender Amir Khan at ONE: BEYOND THE HORIZON this past September, which ended his remarkable five-bout winning streak.
The 29-year-old Baguio City resident sees his three-round lightweight meeting against Park as an opportunity to reinsert his name into the winner’s column.
“This is a perfect opportunity for me to end the year right. I split my previous two matches this year, and I don’t want to lose again, especially that I’ll be competing in front of a passionate Manila crowd on Friday. I don’t want to lose in front of my countrymen,” he said.
“There was a moment in my career where I lost five-straight times inside the cage, and I don’t want to be in that situation again. I want to show the fans that I improve every time I compete, and I want to give them a good show,” Banario added.
Banario stressed that he has made some crucial adjustments to his preparation as he desires to be on the winning track once again.
“I have made other adjustments. I don’t want to be complacent because I am not getting any younger. This is a huge organization with a lot of very good fighters from all over the world. Every win counts,” he mentioned.
Satisfied with the outcome of his training camp, Banario believes that his forthcoming lightweight contest with Park will be having a result in his favor.
“Training had a good turnout. Everyone in my camp extended their helping hand. I feel so rejuvenated for this fight. I don’t know if there is anyone who can cope up with my pace,” he confidently stated.
With the amount of time and energy that he has put into training, Banario is driven to redeem his status as one of the most exciting lightweights in the world.
“Lightweight is one of the deepest divisions in the organization, and there are so many great guys all wanting to get to the top. I have to keep winning so I can stay in the mix,” he ended.
