Team Lakay coach Mark Sangiao surprised Yusup Saadulaev traded strikes with Stephen Loman, warns future opponents

Mark Sangiao, head coach of the famed Team Lakay of the Philippines, is all praises for his ward Stephen ‘The Sniper’ Loman. Loman impressed on his ONE Championship debut against previously ranked Yusup Saadulaev at ONE: Winter Warriors II last December.

But he was hardly surprised by the 30-year-old former Brave FC champion’s performance.

Speaking to ONE Championship in a recent interview, Mark Sangiao said Saadulaev should not have traded fire with Loman. He also warned future opponents of ‘The Sniper’ to avoid committing the same mistake.

“I was not surprised knowing the fight record and experiences of Stephen and that he was a long reigning champion for some years in another promotion. What I was surprised of was Yusup’s game plan of exchanging strikes with ‘The Sniper'. Striking is the bread and butter of Team Lakay as we all know and we were expecting a ground game from Yusup, but he didn't try to take the fight to the ground.”

Mark Sangiao added:

“If Stephen will be able to duplicate the commanding result he got from this debut fight, then facing the champion won't be that far-fetched. There's still a lot that the ONE fans have yet to see from Stephen, but one thing that you should watch out for him will be his power.”

---

Mark Sangiao shares thoughts on Kevin Belingon's losing streak

As good as Loman looked, however, another of Mark Sangiao’s pupils has had a rough go of late.

Former ONE bantamweight world champion Kevin ‘The Silencer’ Belingon suffered his fourth straight loss at the hands of Kwon Won Il. The South Korean delivered a crushing body shot to crumple the once proud Filipino champion.

But Sangiao reminds fans not to write Belingon off just yet, as ‘The Silencer’ still has a lot to offer.

"If there’s one thing that we got from our experiences then, it's that it's important to have self-assurance, that imposing self-confidence that you’ll win the war. Only time and Kevin can tell, of course.”

A passing of the torch is inevitable, with younger fighters making their way through the ranks. But that’s all up to Belingon, according to Sangiao.

“If Kevin decides to pass the buck to Stephen, then so be it. But if he was challenged by the outcome of his outings in his last couple fights and passionately wants to reign in the division one more time, then that will still be very good for us. The passing of the torch will come naturally, and for now, it is what it is."