For the first time in ONE Championship history, a match-up between two athletes from the fabled Team Lakay camp is actually possible.
Geje “Gravity” Eustaquio emerged victorious in his last outing against Kim Kyu Sung at ONE: ENTER THE DRAGON last Friday, 17 May, beating the Korean by unanimous decision.
The match was an alternate bout in the prestigious ONE Flyweight World Grand Prix, which means Eustaquio will now be given the right to enter the tournament should any of the participants withdraw.
His teammate, Danny “The King” Kingad, is very much alive in the tournament, as he is slated to face the division’s former king Kairat “The Kazakh” Akhmetov in the semifinals.
If for any reason one of the three remaining warriors outside of Kingad withdraws from the tournament, then the team has some major decisions to make, as it could lead to a showdown between the two stablemates.
“Of course, we’ve been thinking about it. I’ve actually been joking about it with them, but their focus is solely on getting back on top,” Team Lakay head coach Mark Sangiao said.
Sangiao added that such matters warrant a “family meeting,” where the members would all come together and decide on how they’d approach such an intriguing proposition.
“We will talk about it,” he continued. “This is just sports, so we would just talk about it. If that happens, then we’ll be coming up with a group decision.”
For Eustaquio’s part, he admits that he will certainly have a hard time deciding what to do if presented with such a dilemma.
He has always treated his teammates like brothers, and that is the reason why he turned down joining the prestigious tournament in the first place.
“I always say, ‘family always comes first.’ But if the company will dictate that I need to face Danny Kingad in the finals, it deserves a family meeting,” he acknowledged.
If that time comes, he is banking on his head coach to make a wise decision for the team.
“We should sit down with my team, and I bet coach Mark is wise enough to decide on the matter.”