By Maxine Lagman
FILIPINO Mixed Martial Arts fighter and Manny Pacquiao lookalike Mario Sismundo puts national pride on the line as he fights China’s Keremuaili Maimaitituoheti in the first World Series of Fighting Global Championship to be held in the Philippines, set on Saturday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
The two fighters are expected to steal the spotlight as the co-main event because of the controversial relationship between the Philippines and China due to their dispute over territories in the West Philippine Sea.
The 37-year-old Sismundo is determined to prove that his one punch, 19-second victory last year over John Rey Larena was no fluke.
Sismundo’s resemblance to boxing great Pacquiao also pushes him to train hard in the hopes of approximating the success of the Filipino ring icon.
WSOF owners Vince and Dunessa Hesser are pumped up to help Filipinos like Sismundo make a mark in the Philippine MMA scene.
“[Filipinos] have the heart and the raw talent. They have great spirit and they have the experience. I think that one thing that Filipinos don’t have is a venue to showcase what they could do, that’s why we bring the WSOF (here),” said Vince Hesser on Tuesday at the Philippine Sportswriters Association Forum at Shakey’s Malate.
The veteran WLC lightweight fighter Sismundo dropped to 145 pounds to face Chinese fighter Maimaitituoheti, nicknamed the ‘Mountain Eagle.’ With a 3-1 win-loss mark, he is eager to earn another win and add a devastating loss to Maimaitituoheti’s 5-3 mark.
Besides the 10 exciting fights which will feature fighters from 11 countries from five continents, WSOF owners, together with Local UGB MMA CEO Ferdie Munsayac said they will give away P1 million to one lucky audience on fight night.
“It will be an exciting match to look forward to for the fighters and an even more exciting one for the audience, who could bring home P1 million. This is to make up for our fans, because we always want to give back as much as we can,” Dunessa Hesser said.