Baguio's Team Lakay: The premier camp for Pinoy MMA fighters 

QUICK STATS on LAKAY MMA TAP TEAM INC.

 

FIGHTERS 

20-plus professional fighters and 20 amateur fighters

 

FIGHTERS IN ONE FC:  

Eduard Folayang

Honorio Banario

Kevin Belingon

Rey Docyogen

Geje Eustaquio

 

FIGHTERS IN THE UFC:  

Mark Eddiva 

Dave Galera

 

WOMEN PRO-MMA FIGHTERS:  

Gina Iniong

Charlene Cawed

April Osenio

The training may be agonizing, but it sure pays off. The sustained rigor of prepping for a fight, the pressure cooker of making weight, and finally the adrenaline grind of an MMA fight  itself really only fits a certain kind of personality. 

 

Certain qualities are required to become a complete MMA fighter. Courage is one. Toughness, is arguably another. Love for battle? Certainly. 

 

These qualities and more are what head coach and chairman Marquez "Mark" Sangiao tries to instil in his MMA fighters.

 

“Firstly, one has to begin in his own self,” said Sangiao. “If he has the will and desire to be one of our team, he can come and train with us. He has to have the interest. Then next is passion. He has to be hard working, patient, and very willing to learn and to be taught. . .He has to develop the heart and mind of becoming a great fighter.”

 

It was when Sangiao started competing in pro MMA bouts in 2003 that the kernel of the idea that would eventually become Team Lakay was born. In 2006, Sangiao, together with Eduard Folayang and other members of the current team decided to formally craft a training camp to represent us in national MMA competitions.  

 

The camp, with a strong base in the striking art of Wushu Sanshou, has grown by light years. Especially in the grappling and wrestling department, a particular sticking point in a camp primarily focused on striking. Proof is in the effective takedowns of Edouard Folayang vs Vincent Latoel match, where “Landislide” dragged his opponent to the ground in some very spectacular ways. 

 

No doubt about it: Folayang, Kevin Belingon, David Galera, Eric Kelly, Mark Eddiva, and former One FC featherweight champ Honorio Banario are parlaying their striking expertise into impressive careers. 

 

We wrote to Coach Marquez “Mark” Sangiao and he gamely answered our queries and took us into the mountains for a closer look into the camp.  

 

GMA NEWS ONLINE: MMA fans in the country and in Southeast Asia have great respect for TEAM Lakay's fighters. What sets the Lakay camp apart from other fight camps in the region, like Singapore's EVOLVE MMA or the South Korean camps? 

 

MARK SANGIAO: Team Lakay is different because of our high-altitude training and environment. We utilize what we naturally have: the atmosphere, the terrain, and our cultural background.

 

GNO: Briefly, please take us through the initial founding in 2003. Did you ever dream or think the camp would be as big and influential as it is today in the region's MMA world?

 

MS: We started with our passion and just as a small martial arts gym to train young and talented athletes from our place. We never thought we could be as big as now, but we always dreamed of fighting and competing in international MMA arena.

 

GNO: Your champs and title-holders are very adept at striking and are becoming more well rounded. How has high-level competition in organizations like ONE FC and UFC affected the camp's regimen and focus for MMA fighters and how have you adjusted in terms of that competition with regards to grappling and jiu jitsu?

 

MS: Competing on a high-level and in big organizations such as ONE FC and UFC has motivated us and inspired us to level-up our training and preparation especially in our ground games. We have increased the number of our organized local events such as our every-other-month Team Lakay Grappling competition and our two to three times a year Team Lakay Championship. By this, we provide venues for our athletes and students to test their skills that they have learned during our regular training. We have also hired an international wrestling coach to train us once to twice a month on our takedown defense and offense. We have regular daily schedules for our striking, grappling, and wrestling skills as well as we have levelled up our outdoor strength and conditioning training.

 

GNO: Please tell us about the ongoing story of the camp and what improvements or upgrades, if any, have been undertaken.

 

MS: Since our inception in 2006, we have produced champions and high-level fighters and continue to produce more upcoming champions. We now have two gyms in the north of the Philippines: our Lakay Central Gym located in Baguio City and our Lakay La Trinidad Gym located in La Trinidad, Benguet. We have other gyms affiliated with us like that of the San Fernando Lakay Gym in La Union and the Mountain Province Lakay Team in Mountain Province. 

 

GNO: What is your vision for the camp and how do you plan to reach those goals? 

 

MS: Our vision for the camp is to become the best camp in the Philippines and to be one of the best in Asia and in the world. Likewise, we aim to continue to produce more and maintain an outstanding record of wins, locally, nationally and internationally; to provide an opportunity for our members to further hone their skills and discipline to become responsible and excellent fighters; to develop a pool of talented athletes from the Cordillera Administrative Region and other parts of the Philippines if whoever are interested; and we also want to promote the Cordillera Administrative Region as a Martial Arts Center in the Philippines.

 

Like what I mentioned earlier, we also plan to provide more venues for our fighters to compete on such as our inter-gym Team Lakay Grappler's Cup and our Team Lakay Championship events. — JST, GMA News