Stephen Loman is looking for a fresh start after leaving the team that nurtured him to where he currently is in his career. This week, ‘The Sniper’ announced the news on his official Facebook page that he is leaving the famed Team Lakay stable in the Philippines.

Early in 2023, a slew of fighters from the Baguio team left in a massive exodus led by former ONE Lightweight MMA World Champion Eduard Folayang. “Landslide” then established a new team called Lions Nation MMA, where most of his former teammates joined.

Stephen Loman announces his departure from Team Lakay

Second-ranked bantamweight contender Loman stayed on with legendary Filipino coach Mark Sangiao in order to continue their partnership. Sangiao was then in the 28-year-old’s corner in arguably the biggest fight of his ONE Championship career thus far – a showdown with top-ranked John Lineker at ONE Fight Night 14 back in September 2023.

In a match that could have secured Loman a World Title challenge against reigning king Fabricio Andrade, he failed to overcome ‘Hands of Stone’ and had his three-fight win streak snapped as a result. Now months removed from that loss, Loman has decided to leave the team he has called home for years. In the caption of his Facebook post, Loman wrote some thankful words for his coach and described the conversation he had with coach Sangiao on January 9.

“I conveyed to him [Sangiao] my desire to leave the team and after some discussions, he acceded and peacefully granted my request to leave the team and actually, he even bade me good luck to my future endeavor,” shared the 28-year-old Filipino.

Despite leaving his beloved team, Loman’s aspiration has not shivered. After all, his departure from Team Lakay comes at a crucial time in ONE’s bantamweight MMA division.

Loman’s continued ONE Championship aspirations

Ranked contenders Artem Belakh and Kwon Won Il are both in action against tough opponents at ONE Fight Night 18: Gasanov vs. Oh this Friday, January 12, inside the Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand.

Both men will surely be motivated to climb up the rankings, and Loman will likely be in the crosshairs of whoever comes out on top this weekend. Despite his surprising announcement, the Filipino made it clear that his goal of rising up to become a ONE World Champion has not wavered. “My departure with Team Lakay is not the end of my MMA career but is just another chapter of my MMA career,” Loman clarified.

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Stephen Loman added, “To all of you guys, hope you will continue supporting me as I continue to train and develop my skills while waiting again for a call from ONE Championship for me to fight inside the Circle.” What is your opinion on Stephen Loman’s new move in the world of combat sports?

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