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At ONE: X, Muay Thai legend John Wayne Parr will have his retirement fight in the biggest event ONE Championship has put together.
It's a fitting place to put a bookend to the legendary career of 'The Gunslinger'. Against him is MMA veteran and ONE mainstay Eduard 'The Landslide' Folayang.
The fight has been dubbed the "Wushu vs. Muay Thai Legends Fight." Folayang, before carving out a path in MMA over a decade ago, was a SEA Games gold medalist in the sport of Wushu.
Hailing from the legendary MMA stable, Team Lakay Wushu, Folayang has translated his striking acumen into a cage seamlessly. Come March 26, however, 'The Landslide' will compete in his first striking-only bout in 11 years.
One of his teammates, Lito 'Thunder Kid' Adiwang, recently spoke to GMA News Online, a local Filipino network, about the upcoming legends bout. Discussing the idea that Folayang will be facing a legend in John Wayne Parr, Adiwang had this to say:
“This is the time to prove his [Folayang] power because he will be going up against a legend [Parr] who has several belts under his name. This is a great time to show our base, which is Wushu striking. He [Parr] will bring out the best version of Landslide.”
Wushu and Muay Thai have had clashes in the past. This one is not going to be different. Expect an epic clash of styles as both fighters will try to bring out the best version of their martial arts come fight night.
John Wayne Parr will shoot for his 100th career win in farewell fight at ONE: X
As it stands, Australian Muay Thai Legend John Wayne Parr has 99 wins and 34 losses in his career. He has experienced the highest of the highs and the lowest of the lows in the ring.
He has fought the best the sport has to offer. Fighters like the great Buakaw Banchamek, Yodsanklai Fairtex and just recently, Nieky Holzken have shared the stage with Parr.
Now in the final fight of his career, Parr wants to cap things off with a 100th win. It's a strory-book ending to a life mostly lived inside the fours corners of the ring. In an interview with ONE Championship, Parr had this to say about his final fight:
“I’m looking for a knockout. I want to finish my career with a highlight-reel finish. And if not, I just want to get the win. I have 99 wins. I just need one more win to crack 100. I’ll be really excited to get that monkey off my back and finally reach my potential and retire satisfied, knowing that I’ve given everything in my career.”
Whether or not John Wayne Parr truly provides a Cinderella-like ending to his career is yet to be seen. Better tune in on March 26 to find out.
