Former ONE Strawweight World Champion Joshua “The Passion” Pacio may have lost his previous battle inside the ONE Circle but he remains motivated to keep pushing to be a better athlete.
Last Saturday, December 3, the Filipino superstar failed to defend his World Title for the fourth straight time in his second reign after dropping a unanimous decision loss against Jarred “The Monkey King” Brooks in the main event of ONE 164 at the Mall of Asia Arena in Manila, Philippines.
The bout was a back-and-forth battle for both men all throughout the match with Pacio scoring efficiently with his leg kicks and body shots while Brooks has his moments on the ground.
After 25 minutes of non-stop action, The three judges had it in favor of Brooks on their scorecards giving the American star his 20th straight win and the prestigious ONE Strawweight World Title.
“It was a close and very competitive fight, but I also admit that I became stagnant with my offense. I could have done better to secure the win,” said Pacio.
“The game plan was to strike and to slow him down. In the early rounds, I was landing some solid shots in the body together with my leg kicks. I was also able to defend him on the ground, but in the championship rounds, my combinations came up short. I became hesitant and just waited for him to move which I think cost me the match,” he added.
“At the end of the day, all is well, and I would like to thank our almighty God because I didn’t get any serious injuries. The loss might be a bitter pill for me to take, but I am sure I will learn many things from it.”
Though the result did not go his way, Pacio is currently in high spirits. The match exposed things that the 26-year-old Baguio City native needs to work on, and that is exactly what he will be focusing on moving forward.
“I never give up no matter what. I just need to keep training hard and improve some areas of my game. This time I’ll give extra time to increase the firepower of my offense, add more combinations and work on my setups. Eliminate those stagnant moments that were stopping me to unleash my full potential inside the ONE Circle” Pacio shared.
“I trained almost every day to improve. I’ll take this loss as a big lesson. I’m confident that I’ll come back stronger after this.”
Now that he is back on the drawing board, Pacio won’t rush things in his quest to regain his World title. But one thing is for sure, “The Passion” promises a different athlete the next time he steps foot inside the ONE Championship stage.
“I’m not in a hurry to regain my crown but if they offer me the rematch, I’ll definitely going to take it 100%. But if not, I’ll just continue to level up my game,” said Pacio
“I’m always ready to fight. I want to stay active and compete as much as I can this 2023. I will come back stronger no matter what. I guarantee that you will be seeing a different Joshua Pacio in my next outing and will do my best to put that belt again around my waist.”
Fight Game Asia 