Geje Eustaquio's Brother-In-Law Set To Represent Team Lakay In ONE Championship

Team Lakay will have a busy week ahead as the fabled mixed martial arts (MMA) group is set to field three of their representatives on ONE Championship's back-to-back fight cards at the iconic Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand.

Leading the cast of talents based in La Trinidad, Philippines is Jhanlo Sangiao, who faces Argentina's Matias Farinelli in a three-round bantamweight encounter at ONE Fight Night 9 on Saturday morning, April 22 (Friday evening, April 21 in the United States).

On the other hand, Adonis Sevilleno is assigned to welcome Mongolia's Enkh-Orgil Baatarkhuu to the main roster in a supporting bantamweight match at ONE Friday Fights 13 on April 21.

It was confirmed over the weekend that Carlos Alvarez would join Sevilleno at ONE Friday Fights 13 to take on Iran's Reza Abasi in the event's curtain-raiser—contested in the featherweight division.

Alvarez owns a 1-0 standing, winning his professional debut versus compatriot John Farnican in December 2019 by way of a standing guillotine choke in the first round.

He also represented the Philippines at the 31st Southeast Asian Games in kickboxing, figuring in the 67-kilogram full-contact category where he reached the quarterfinal round before bowing out of the tourney.

Despite having one bout as a pro, Alvarez has garnered a stamp of approval from brother-in-law and ex-ONE flyweight champion Geje Eustaquio, vouching that the 24-year-old young brother of his wife Rose is ready to strut his wares under the bright lights of the sport's international stage.

"Carlos has a very good attitude as an athlete. In terms of skill set, he can wrestle, he can strike, and he can do jiu-jitsu. The new breed of Team Lakay fighters is totally different from us because they got a complete arsenal of MMA," Eustaquio said of Alvarez.

"I'm very happy to see my little brother-in-law finally compete in the big league. He sacrificed a lot to get to this point."

The opposition waiting for Alvarez is Abasi, who holds an MMA win-loss slate of 1-1 with one victory coming by submission.

Though both men have virtually identical records, Eustaquio feels Alvarez is the favorite to walk away with his hands raised in triumph.

"I will be lying if I say I'm not nervous. When a member of your family is going to fight, things are different. But seeing Carlos' preparation and hard work, I feel a victory is on the horizon," he ended.