Kevin Belingon, Honorio Banario key figures in newly formed Lions Nation MMA
Published Jun 26, 2023 08:56 am
Eyebrows were raised when two-time ONE Lightweight World Champion Eduard "Landslide" Folayang announced the formation of his new squad Lions Nation MMA over the weekend.
*Kevin Belingon. (ONE Championship Images)*
After all, it’s one thing being a decorated fighter, but it’s a whole new thing to start a team from scratch. But Folayang has two veteran fighters to help him build the squad – former ONE Bantamweight World Champion Kevin "The Silencer" Belingon and inaugural ONE Featherweight World Champion Honorio "The Rock" Banario. The former divisional kings will be crucial voices on the team. Not only have they reached the pinnacle of the sport, but the duo were also excellent role models for Team Lakay and their community in general. For Belingon, he vows to be the ultimate team player on his new squad. “Teamwork is everything. We need that to help us in our everyday training as we continue to improve,” he said. “Our goal is to keep getting better on things that we are weak in.” Banario echoed similar sentiments. “Just like what Kevin said, teamwork and sharing our knowledge with one another in the hopes of building up our respective skills [will be crucial],” he said. “Especially in the fight game, learning how to game plan is a crucial step. [You need that] in the fight game now, wherein you have to really be prepared for a fight. That’s some of the things we have to do to get better.” But make no mistake about it, the pair aren’t coming in just to give veteran advice – they’re also in it for their respective careers. While both Belingon and Banario have been in slumps lately, they know that some fresh scenery with new perspectives could change all that. “I believe in the saying that ‘change is good,’ because for me, I want to broaden my horizons and see what else is still there for me to explore in the future. With regards to our BJJ, we really have to improve in that aspect. So that’s one of my goals – to work on my BJJ skills plus other skills that I can adapt,” Belingon said. To which Banario continued: “Of course, I believe in it too, since if we make mistakes, we learn from it. Like in our training sessions, if we have a bad day and we lose in the fight, at least we got something out of it, and we’re willing to improve,” he said. “We’re improving our arsenal day-by-day. Recently, some of us were promoted to blue belts. Edward Kelly earned his second stripe and I earned my first stripe. That’s the start of our change. For our fans, we hope that you guys can watch the new sides of us in the world of MMA.”
*Kevin Belingon. (ONE Championship Images)*
After all, it’s one thing being a decorated fighter, but it’s a whole new thing to start a team from scratch. But Folayang has two veteran fighters to help him build the squad – former ONE Bantamweight World Champion Kevin "The Silencer" Belingon and inaugural ONE Featherweight World Champion Honorio "The Rock" Banario. The former divisional kings will be crucial voices on the team. Not only have they reached the pinnacle of the sport, but the duo were also excellent role models for Team Lakay and their community in general. For Belingon, he vows to be the ultimate team player on his new squad. “Teamwork is everything. We need that to help us in our everyday training as we continue to improve,” he said. “Our goal is to keep getting better on things that we are weak in.” Banario echoed similar sentiments. “Just like what Kevin said, teamwork and sharing our knowledge with one another in the hopes of building up our respective skills [will be crucial],” he said. “Especially in the fight game, learning how to game plan is a crucial step. [You need that] in the fight game now, wherein you have to really be prepared for a fight. That’s some of the things we have to do to get better.” But make no mistake about it, the pair aren’t coming in just to give veteran advice – they’re also in it for their respective careers. While both Belingon and Banario have been in slumps lately, they know that some fresh scenery with new perspectives could change all that. “I believe in the saying that ‘change is good,’ because for me, I want to broaden my horizons and see what else is still there for me to explore in the future. With regards to our BJJ, we really have to improve in that aspect. So that’s one of my goals – to work on my BJJ skills plus other skills that I can adapt,” Belingon said. To which Banario continued: “Of course, I believe in it too, since if we make mistakes, we learn from it. Like in our training sessions, if we have a bad day and we lose in the fight, at least we got something out of it, and we’re willing to improve,” he said. “We’re improving our arsenal day-by-day. Recently, some of us were promoted to blue belts. Edward Kelly earned his second stripe and I earned my first stripe. That’s the start of our change. For our fans, we hope that you guys can watch the new sides of us in the world of MMA.”