Filipino mixed martial arts fans will not yet see Lito Adiwang to be back in action inside the ONE Championship circle after the Team Lakay camp announced the Cordilleran warrior has not fully recovered from his injury.
Adiwang is scheduled to face undefeated Mansur Malachiev of Russia at ONE Fight Night 6 in Bangkok, Thailand on Jan. 4, 2023 but the slow healing process has prevented him from getting back to the circle.
In his message posted in Team Lakay social media accounts, Adiwang said: “To ONE Championship, my opponent, fans and supporters, I am sorry that I will not be able to compete this January in Bangkok but I will do my best to heal and recover as fast as I can and continue this fight.”
Countless fans were saddened by the announcement, but Adiwang has assured them that he will enter the circle healthy and prepared to give the best show he can give.
The Team Lakay dynamo tore his anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in his all-Filipino match against Jeremy Miado at ONE X in March, and after going under the knife in May to reconstruct his torn ligament, Adiwang needed six months to recover and prepare for this.
From the injury, to the recovery, to the unexpected loss, Adiwang knows that there’s only one thing that can get his head straight – martial arts and competition.
“With the trials in my career and life, I have tasted defeat in the game, injury, and losses in life. It is painful and demoralizing. I did reach my breaking point, but I know that if I succumb to this emotional and painful feeling, this can be my downfall,” Adiwang said. – Harley F. Palangchao
