By CARLO ANOLIN
Victory continues to be elusive for Team Lakay’s Eduard Folayang after suffering another defeat Friday night against Australian fighter in their lightweight bout in ONE: Inside the Matrix at the Singapore Indoor Stadium.
Caruso, who trains along with ONE Championship stars Aung La N Sang and Martin Nguyen in Sanford MMA stable, scored a unanimous decision against Folayang to secure his first win in the promotion.
“I really need to assess my performance,” the soft-spoken Folayang told sportswriters in a virtual post-match press conference. “My mind is very clear on this fight but I think my conditioning didn’t go too well. I really need to check some small details [if] I made mistakes that I need to fix again.”
The 29-year-old Caruso dominated early in the first round, taking advantage of ground game mastery over Folayang. The Filipino fighter tried to get back on his feet but Caruso easily caught him for another takedown.
After a strong start, Caruso attempted a guillotine choke with around 30 seconds left but the Team Lakay stalwart was clever and quick to escape the lethal lock.
The first half of the second frame was a fair exchange of grappling moves, with Caruso taking over first before Folayang looked for an opening en route to a submission. The two fighters, who were breathing heavily after a lengthy ground game, then decided to make it an all-out brawl at the 2:30 mark.
Folayang opened the third and final canto with few leg kicks on Caruso, which took a toll on the Australian’s stance. Caruso wanted none of that as he tried to retaliate with punches straight to Folayang’s face. After the fiery exchange, an injury time was called due to an accidental kick to the groin from Folayang.
Looking for a knockout in the waning minutes, the 35-year-old Folayang unloaded aggressive combinations and leg kicks but another injury time was called due to an accidental head clash. Caruso sought for a last second ground game finisher until referee Justin Brown untangled the two as the final bell rang.
Despite the loss, Folayang admitted “feeling good” after being back in the Circle after nine long months of hiatus but noted some adjustments he had to make with select live spectators at the venue.
