Rocky BatolBatol hungry for maiden ONE Championship win

Rocky Batolbatol

Considered as one of the promising Filipino MMA prospects three years ago, Rocky Batolbatol's luster slowly faded due to setbacks that have plagued him during his ONE Championship stint.

The Bacolod native lost his ONE FC debut back in November 2014, suffering a second-round submission loss to Martin Nguyen, and then followed that up with a first-round submission to Anthony Engelen back in February 2016.

A few months later, he would suffer a first round technical knockout loss in May that year to Christian Lee.

Hoping to end that skid, the 31-year old is scheduled to face Sunoto at the ONE: Conquest of Kings, which takes place at the GOR Kertajaya Arena in Surabaya, Indonesia on July 29.

Sharing his thoughts his upcoming match, Batolbatol says, "I am back! I am so excited to be back in action for ONE Championship, the Asian leader of martial arts and the premier MMA promotion in the region. Ever since my last fight, I did not stop training. It is truly an honor to showcase my talent and skills on a global stage like ONE Championship."

Rocky shares that he put additional emphasis on grappling to prepare for his Indonesian opponent, "I wanted to be comfortable anywhere the fight would go. That is why I focused on my wrestling and Brazilian Jiu-jitsu for this fight. But of course, I did not neglect my striking, which is my bread-and-butter for years."

A former boxer, Rocky is seeking a knockout victory, which took place during his first five fights. He says, "I want a knockout. It has been a long time since the last time that I won by way of knockout. I am going in that cage with a statement to make. I can truly say that I am in the best shape of my career."

He adds, "I need this win. I can't lose forever. It feels like I've been losing forever already. But this is my chance to prove that there is a light at the end of (the) tunnel. No one stays on the losing side."

Even with the losses, Rocky remains unfazed. "I am continuing my career as an MMA fighter because I love this sport. It keeps me alive. Moreover, this is what I live for. Setbacks don't matter because I love what I do. That's why I do it." He concludes, "I am motiviated to win this fight. I want to secure my first win in ONE Championship. That's my goal. It keeps me focused and driven for this fight."

Updates on ONE: Conquest of Kings and other MMA events are found on www.onefc.com.