Improved Geje Eustaquio ready to rock Singapore

Even though Geje “Gravity” Eustaquio is coming off a disappointing setback and facing a familiar foe as he makes his return to the ONE Championship cage, the celebrated Filipino martial artist remains optimistic that he will have his hand raised in triumph.

Eustaquio faces fierce Thai rival Anatpong “Mak” Bunrad on the undercard of ONE: DYNASTY OF HEROES, which takes place at the 12,000-seater Singapore Indoor Stadium in Kallang, Singapore on Friday, 26 May.

The 28-year-old Baguio City native first crossed paths with Bunrad in April 2015 at ONE: VALOR OF CHAMPIONS, where the latter took a razor-thin split decision victory.

Although he is fresh from a first-round submission loss to Finnish submission specialist Toni Tauru this past December, Eustaquio has no doubt that he could settle the score following a controversial split decision in favor of Bunrad when they first met two years ago.

“My first fight against him served as a big lesson. It’s my duty to learn from my mistakes and improve to become a better martial artist. I know what I am capable of. I can’t wait to showcase my talent this coming May 26,” he said.

“Singapore, be ready. I am bringing the fireworks to you,” Eustaquio added.

Eustaquio promises a new and improved version of himself when he steps inside the ONE Championship cage against Bunrad.

“There is always a room for improvement. I sensed the urgency to improve my skills and arsenal further after the fight against Toni Tauru. This time, we enhanced timing and precision. We added speed as well as proper executions of game plan,” he shared.

Although he expects that Bunrad will stand and bang with him in their three-round flyweight encounter, Eustaquio asserted that he made sure to fine-tune his ground game.

“My ground game is coming. My wrestling is coming. I believe if you’re going to compare it with others, it’s not very low in terms of performance in wrestling or grappling,” he said. “Honestly speaking, I am not that far behind.”

Team Lakay head coach Mark Sangiao believes that Eustaquio is the better cage competitor than Bunrad, noting that his valued pupil has learned his lessons from his recent outing in ONE Championship.

“Skills wise, I’ve seen an improved and better Geje, as compared to two years ago when the two fighters met. So this is going to be a good fight the fans would love to see,” Sangiao guaranteed.

​For more updates on ONE Championship, please visit www.onefc.com, follow us on Twitter and Instagram @ONEChampionship, and like us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/ONEChampionship.

About ONE Championship™

ONE Championship is the largest sports media property in Asian history. Headquartered in Singapore, the world’s most exciting mixed martial arts organization hosts the largest sports entertainment events across Asia featuring the best Asian mixed martial artists and world champions, all signed to exclusive contracts, on the largest media broadcast in Asia. ONE Championship is broadcast to over 1 billion viewers across 118+ countries around the world with some of the largest global broadcasters, including FOX Sports, Setanta, MNC, Astro, Thairath TV, ABS-CBN, TV5, MYTV, HTV, OSN and more.

Davao Aguilas FC Attracts a Crowd of 4,384 in its First Home Game in Tagum

Davao Aguilas FC is all set for its first home game for the Philippines Football League (PFL), to be held at the Davao del Norte Sports Complex on Sunday, May 14, 2017.  They will be going up against JPV Marikina, which was previously part of the UFL.

The team is starting to create a following in Davao and nearby provinces; and fans were seen waiting for them when they arrived at the Davao airport last Friday.

Australian Head Coach Gary Philips says, “We are excited to be here in Davao and we are looking forward to our first home game and we hope our fans will turn up in numbers and support the team.  We all are excited, we can’t wait to see you on Sunday.”

Coach Gary has previously worked in 5 different countries, including the National League in Australia.  He was also previously with AFC, for Coach Education and has also handled international men’s and women’s teams.

The team’s goalkeeping coach on the other hand is Australian James Fraser, renowned World Cup goalkeeper for Australia in 1974. 

     The team’s impressive line-up is composed of homegrown footballers, national team players and Fil-foreign players.  Local players include Team Captain Jason Cordova,  John Nico Macapal, Kim Versales, Junell Bautista, Philippine Azkals standout Nate Burkey, Under 22 mainstays Van Rey Diaz and Richard Talaroc of Misamis Oriental, Princeton Josue, Davao goalkeeper Roeder Ignacio, Tagum native Alexis Cabistante, Mujer Sumail, Amir Amaikurut, Kahlil Jikiri, Justin Cheng,
John Philip De Los Santos, John Resty Gumban, Gerald Layumas, Jay-Ar Bucayan, Stephen Burda and Rey Franco De La Torre.  

     Fil-foreign players include Brad McDonald, Fil-American right wing Omar Khan, attacker Gilmar Fernandez, midfielder Andreas Esswein, Serbian goalkeeper Marko Trkulja, striker Nikola Grubjesic, defender Milos Krstic and Dylan De Bruycker, who scored the first goal for the team in last weekend’s match against Ilocos United. 
 
 

Tickets are available at the stadium.
For more information, please visit www.facebook.com/DAFCofficial.


ABOUT DAVAO AGUILAS FC:


Davao Aguilas Football Club (DAFC), was established earlier this year as a professional football club, based out of Tagum, Davao del Norte, in Mindanao.
The coaching staff is headed by Gary Philips, an Australian football veteran. DAFC’s CEO is Ramon Manuel, while its Chairman is Jefferson Cheng.
Expect more from Davao Aguilas FC as they take part in Philippines Football League (PFL) this season!

For more information, please visit www.facebook.com/DAFCofficial.

Boracay-based Swedish martial artist feels excited for ONE Championship debut

Singapore is in for a treat as one of the best welterweights in the Asia Pacific region has directed his career path to ONE Championship, which is widely considered as the mixed martial arts (MMA) juggernaut of Asia.

Swedish standout Zebaztian “The Bandit” Kadestam will make his promotional debut under the ONE Championship banner on the undercard of ONE: DYNASTY OF HEROES, which takes place at the 12,000-seater Singapore Indoor Stadium in Kallang, Singapore on 26 May.

Kadestam is an MMA veteran, who holds an 8-3 professional record and has competed for some of the continent’s top promotions.

Six of his eight career victories have come by way of knockout, including a 11-second stoppage of Finnish rival Glenn Sparv in April 2016.

Training out of Legacy Gym in Boracay, Aklan under the tutelage of decorated kickboxer and MMA trouper Ole Laursen, Kadestam made his mark in the sport’s growing scene in Asia by capturing the welterweight championship of a regional organization before successfully defending it twice in dominating fashion.

Now finally finding his way to ONE Championship, Kadestam sets his sights on establishing a lasting impression as he shares the cage with former ONE Welterweight World Championship title contender Luis “Sapo” Santos at ONE: DYNASTY OF HEROES.

“I am grateful for the opportunity that has been given to me by this well-respected MMA promotion. ONE Championship is the premier MMA organization in Asia. With my debut taking place this coming May 26, it’s a chance to show the world what I am capable of doing inside the cage,” she said.

“I’m not going to waste this wonderful opportunity. I am here to give every fan of the sport who is going to watch the event live a night to remember,” Kadestam added.

As a strong-minded competitor with the ability to score a knockout in a variety of methods, Kadestam seeks a statement-making victory in his first assignment as a ONE Championship athlete.

“It’s my first time to compete in ONE Championship. Of course, I am aiming to get a huge win. I’ve worked hard just to make it here. I won’t waste this opportunity,” he claimed.

However, Kadestam is fully aware that having his hand raised against Santos will be a tough task to accomplish.

Santos owns 70 professional bouts in his prizefighting record and over half of his wins ending by either TKO or KO.

With a black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and a penchant for spectacular finishes, Santos has emerged as one of ONE Championship’s most overwhelming physical specimens – a fighter capable of finishing a bout in a variety of ways at any given moment.

Known for his aggressiveness and brute strength, Santos looks to continue his dominance inside the ONE Championship cage in his next outing against Kadestam.

“We are keenly studying my opponent for this fight. He is a more experienced fighter than I am. I know what he is capable of doing inside the cage. But I view this as a challenge that can truly benefit my career. It’s an honor to share the cage with a great warrior like him,” Kadestam said of Santos.

Although many cageside observers speak highly of him due to his impressive track record, Kadestam is more than willing to meet their expectations as he vows to notch a decisive triumph in his favor.

“I take pride on being an exciting competitor inside the cage, willing to please the crowd by always seeking the highlight-reel finish. In my ONE Championship debut, fans are in for a treat,” he ended.

For more updates on ONE Championship, please visit www.onefc.com, follow us on Twitter and Instagram @ONEChampionship, and like us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/ONEChampionship.

About ONE Championship™

ONE Championship is the largest sports media property in Asian history. Headquartered in Singapore, the world’s most exciting mixed martial arts organization hosts the largest sports entertainment events across Asia featuring the best Asian mixed martial artists and world champions, all signed to exclusive contracts, on the largest media broadcast in Asia. ONE Championship is broadcast to over 1 billion viewers across 118+ countries around the world with some of the largest global broadcasters, including FOX Sports, Setanta, MNC, Astro, Thairath TV, ABS-CBN, TV5, MYTV, HTV, OSN and more.

*This is Press Release

Bacolod, Get Ready for Color Manila's CM Backlight Run!

After the recently concluded CM Challenge Cebu last May 14, that drew thousands in attendance; Bacolod folks who can’t wait for their turn to have that Color Manila experience, can now look forward to the next CM Blacklight Bacolod run, set to take place on the evening of June 3, 2017.

The run will be held at The District North Point, Bacolod, and is part of the 3-city CM Blacklight Tour that includes Manila and Davao City.

For a quick preview of what to expect, participants will be immersed in glow-in-the-dark vibrant colored powder in a series of color stations.  They will also be wearing the CM Blacklight headlamps to heighten their blacklight experience.  For Rockstar and Challenge categories, they will also have face paint applied on their faces. 

Of course, runners can look forward to the signature Color Festival at the end of their journey, wherein everyone throws colored powder up in the air (and at their friends), while the latest beats are playing and everyone just dances to the music.

Participants can choose between three race distances - the 3K, 5K and 10K categories, and 3 types of kits - the Deluxe, Rockstar and Superstar kits.  The Deluxe kit is priced at Php750, with the kit containing a singlet, costume prop, race bib, drawstring bag, finisher's medal and a color packet.  The Rockstar kit, priced at Php1,050, comes with a drifit shirt, race bib, headlamp, drawstring bag, color packet and finisher’s medal.  The Superstar kit, priced at Php1,500, comes with a drifit shirt, race bib, headlamp, 3 drawstring bags, headwear, CM sticker, color packet and finisher’s medal.

Registration is ongoing www.colormanilarun.com and at SM Ticket counters. Prepaid cards are also available at Planet Sports Robinson's Place and Chris Sports at The District North Point.

Race Kit Claiming on the other hand, will be from May 31 to June 2, 10am to 7pm at Corte Area, The District North Point.

For more information about the CM Blacklight Run Tour, please visit www.colormanilarun.com or https://www.facebook.com/ColorManilaRun.