Robin “The Ilonggo” Catalan knows the importance of his upcoming match, not just for himself, but also for his team.
Catalan looks to end the string of losses his team—Catalan Fighting System (CFS)—has suffered last year when he takes on Elipitua “The Magician” Siregar in the curtain raiser of ONE: HEAVY HITTERS on January 15 at the Singapore Indoor Stadium.
The last victory by CFS in the Circle was when “The Ilonggo” knocked out Gustavo “El Gladiador” Balart late in 2019. Unfortunately, the pandemic halted the momentum his team had.
“In that stretch, I haven’t stopped training. I have been training for a long time knowing that I’ll have to get our gym back to the right track, and now I have that chance,” the Santa Barbara, Iloilo native said.
“That’s why this match is crucial to me. Kuya Rene has been losing, Jomary (Torres) also lost, so it’s up to me now.”
Fueling his motivation are the naysayers and critics who have been looking down on CFS since they started losing.
“I’ve also been hearing a lot of things. Because of our recent results, some fans are beginning to look down on us. So, it’s up to me to prove to all the people that’s been doubting us that we’re here to stay,” he shared.
“I’m doing this for my team and myself because I came from a loss as well.”
Catalan shared that despite the setbacks, their team’s morale is still high. He believes the long rest worked to his advantage due to the longer preparation time for Siregar.
“We’re still excited, especially me since I haven’t competed for quite some time now. I was scheduled for a fight early this year, but unfortunately, I haven’t gotten my vaccine yet, so it got moved to January,” the Muay Thai and wushu specialist stated.
“I’m excited knowing that I’ve had a long time to prepare for him. I think I’ve been preparing for more than six months. I have no reason to back down now.”
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