You might think Team Lakay had been rocked by the departures of its most successful and experienced fighters. But according to Jhanlo Sangiao it is business as usual at the Baguio camp.
Fighters have been competing on an almost weekly basis and the 21 year old will be looking for his second win of the year at ONE Fight Night 13 next month. He says losing the likes of Eduard Folayang, Kevin Belingin and Joshua Pacio hasn’t affected Team Lakay,
“Honestly, I don’t think (it) affected us at all. We have a lot of new athletes to compete under the Team Lakay banner. I have new sparring partners now, so we’re fine.”
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New generation
Among the new generation of Team Lakay fighters is Carlos Alvarez. The featherweight has won two fights out of two at Lumpinee Stadium this year and Sangiao is excited to see how his career develops,
“Take Carlos Alvarez for example. Seeing Carlos Alvarez continue to win fights in ONE Friday Fights definitely excites me. I’m pumped up to continue winning myself seeing Carlos build a streak of his own.”
This Friday Carlo Bumina-ang will be representing Team Lakay at ONE Friday Fights 27. Sangiao says the up and coming fighters on the team have a close relationship and are helping each other out,
“I guess it’s all about building that new identity now, a culture of collaboration where we focus on helping each other out, particularly to those who have a fight coming up, sharing what we’ve experienced with each other.”
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New face
Stephen Loman looks set to challenge for the bantamweight title next. But with his 6-0 record Sangiao is inevitably the focus of a lot of attention and he is determined to enjoy the ride,
“I don’t really look at myself as the new face of Team Lakay. I just want to let things move naturally. Just enjoy the ride, train hard, and then show (what I can do) each time I get the chance to compete. That’s my goal.”
Of course his father founded Team Lakay so the roots run deep. Sangiao might not see himself as the face of the team but it is not a role he feels unsuited to,
“If they want to say that I’m the face of the team, then thank you. I’ll try to live up to that.”
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Everyone equal
But he says everyone is equal at Team Lakay and being the founder’s son doesn’t mean he gets special treatment,
“I don’t think there’s a special treatment when it comes to being ‘the guy’ now in Team Lakay. It’s equal treatment, whoever has a fight coming up, that’s where we focus.”
“I have lots of faith in myself and in my training. I believe in my partners at Team Lakay and I know that I have the best coach in my corner in my dad, so I’m confident that I can hang with anyone.”
