Vincent Latoel lands a strike that takes down Eddie Ng during their encounter at ONE FC 16. (Photo : Getty Images/Suhaimi Abdullah)
ONE Championship, one of the world's largest mixed martial arts promotions, boasts a number of veterans and top class talents. One such veteran is kickboxer Vincent Latoel, 37, also known as Magnivincent.
Magnivincent hails from the Netherlands but he is also of Indonesian descent. He has fought some of the biggest names to ever grace the organization and has also fought for large organizations such as K-1 and Shooto under his belt.
Latoel has come to show that he respects his fellow fighters as well particularly the Filipino combatants he has faced in his professional MMA career. The Dutch-Indonesian fighter has faced two Filipino fighters in his career thus far and has expressed his admiration for both.
"Filipino fighters are true warriors," ABS-CBN News quoted Latoel as saying. "I've faced Eduard Folayang before he became the ONE lightweight world champion. He was so tough and a gallant competitor. The same goes with Edward Kelly. He has a big heart."
Latoel faced ONE Lightweight champion Eduard Folayang back in December 2013 in a back and forth contest. He also faced featherweight prospect Edward Kelly, but he was defeated via knockout in the second round of their matchup. Although Latoel lost on both occasions, he showed valiant effort and won the respect of countless fight fans.
It could be said that Latoel is on a losing streak against Filipino mixed martial artists. However, he is looking forward to bouncing back, adding to his 16 wins in 34 professional bouts and regaining the form, which allowed him to win seven straight in the span of three years back in 2004 to 2007.
Latoel believes he still has gas in the tank, but veterans like him are now seemingly only being touted to be stepping stones for up-and-coming fighters, according to Asia One. He will face his third Filipino adversary on Jan. 14, 2017 in the form of Vaughn Donayre.
While he says that he has much respect for the brave fighter Donayre, Latoel believes that it is now his time to shine. Watch highlights of Latoe and Kelly's match below:
