MANILA, Philippines — Team Lakay head coach Mark Sangiao and stalwarts Joshua Pacio and Geje Eustaquio had their work cut out for them in choosing who walks away with a $100,000 contract with ONE Championship in ONE Warrior Series: Philippines.
As coaches and judges of the reality drama set to premiere on GTV on Sunday, Sangiao, Pacio, and Eustaquio played the role of judge and jury in choosing who among 16 aspiring mixed martial artists gets to represent the famed Baguio stable in the Singapore promotion.
But rather than looking solely on the skills brought inside the Circle by the MMA hopefuls, Sangiao said that they put much premium on a fighter's attitude.
Though at first it may seem trivial to judge a fighter based on how he acts removed from his MMA skills, Sangiao explained that there is much to do with how a fighter is outside of the sport on how far he can make it.
"Physically, and skill-wise, madali madetermine yun, you can easily determine yun. Unlike attitude, ang hirap baguhin kaya yung pinapriority namin is the character and the attitude," Sangiao said during the media launch of the series on Thursday.
"Kasi madali lang magcreate ng champion especially when you train with champions. For skills, madali mong maituturo yan. This is the proper way how to punch, kick, wrestle, andiyan, complete yan lahat. Lahat yan pwede mo ituro isa isa, but the attitude, once na yan yung nawawala, yung right attitude, ang hirap." he added.
ONE Championship also prides themselves in promoting values outside of martial arts, like integrity, humility, honor, respect, courage, discipline, and compassion.
Sangiao and his team's approach to the show seem to mirror this vision of ONE Championship.
ONE Warrior Series: Philippines airs its pilot episode on Sunday, 9:35 p.m. at GTV and will broadcast new episodes weekly until late November.
The winner of the competition will be competing under the banner of Team Lakay and has been announced to make his debut in ONE Championship's return to Manila in December 3 at ONE 164: Pacio vs Brooks.