FOLLOWING Carlos “The Limitless” Alvarez’s back-to-back breakout performances under the ONE Friday Fights umbrella, the spotlight shines on another Team Lakay prospect.
Carlo “The Bull” Bumina-ang will have the privilege of carrying the torch for the legendary mixed martial arts stable as he is set to face Iran’s Reza “The Jaguar” Saedi in a three-round bantamweight showdown at ONE Friday Fights 27.
The proud Baguio City native began his training in 2017 and then turned pro two years later in a bout held in his hometown, where he thwarted compatriot Arniel Lomayno by way of first-round TKO.
Expectations are high for the 29-year-old standout as he is part of Team Lakay’s highly-touted next generation of talents alongside Alvarez and Jhanlo “The Machine” Sangiao, offering a well-balanced mix of eye-catching standup game and high-pressure grappling.
In fact, Bumina-ang accomplished a double gold medal finish at the recently-concluded 2023 Pan-Asian Gi & No Gi Jiu Jitsu International Open hosted by the Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Federation of the Philippines.
“The Bull” topped the 73-kilogram No Gi category and then went on to capture gold in the No Gi absolute division.
“Fighter na fighter si Carlo,” said Team Lakay founder and coach Mark Sangiao of Bumina-ang. “Gusto niya talaga war, toe-to-toe. Kaya ako na ang nagpangalan sa kanya na ‘The Bull’ kasi nakita ko sa performance niya na walang tigil and he will really work na ma-finish yung laro.”
Standing in the way of Bumina-ang to go 2-0 is Saedi, who will also be making his maiden appearance in ONE Championship.
With a kickboxing and wrestling pedigree, Saedi had his first assignment in the professional ranks under a local organization in February 2020, edging out fellow countryman Ali Khademi by way of a razor-thin split decision.
Saedi was supposed to face Bumina-ang’s teammate Alvarez at ONE Friday Fights 25 last July 14, but he withdrew from the bout due to an undisclosed reason.
At ONE Friday Fights 27, the Iranian debutant will move down a weight class to duke it out with another Team Lakay representative in the form of Bumina-ang.
ONE Friday Fights 27 is scheduled to take place at the iconic Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand on August 4.
Filipino fight fans can catch the action live on ONE Championship’s YouTube channel and Facebook page at 8:30 PM on the aforementioned date.
Immediately after Bumina-ang’s ONE Friday Fights 27 outing, Team Lakay will field Sangiao on the morning of August 5 as he takes on Mongolia’s Enkh-Orgil Baatarkhuu in one of the feature matchups lined up for the much-awaited ONE Fight Night 13.