Joshua Pacio is readying himself for one of the biggest fights of his career, and he believes he is in the perfect place to do it. At ONE 166: Qatar on Friday, March 1, the former ONE Strawweight MMA World Champion will get a shot at reclaiming the gold when he rematches the current king Jarred Brooks inside the Lusail Sports Arena.
The event will be ONE Championship’s first in Qatar, and it’ll be broadcast live and for free on Prime Video for Amazon subscribers across North America.
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Joshua Pacio talks about his preparation going into the rematch against Jared Brooks
In an interview with the promotion, Pacio explained that he’s getting everything in line at his new gym – not just his skills. “When you’re preparing for a bout with this, kind of, magnitude, you must be 100 percent ready physically, mentally, spiritually, and emotionally,” he said.
“First of all, as an athlete, you have to feel at home. When you’re confident and happy in your environment, it will bring out the best in an athlete. And I can honestly say that’s what I’m feeling right now. All of that can be attributed to the support I’m getting here at Lions Nation MMA.”
Last year, Pacio left his longtime home of Team Lakay to found Lions Nation MMA with his teammates, who had also chosen to leave the famed Filipino outfit. That decision looks to have been the right one, as “The Passion” bested previously undefeated star Mansur Malachiev in his return to ONE at ONE Fight Night 15 last October.
He will look to carry that momentum when he meets “The Monkey God” again this weekend. And though the American titleholder bested him by a unanimous decision to claim the strawweight MMA strap in December 2022, Pacio is confident that he is getting the best preparations to bring the fight in the rematch.
Pacio reveals to have checked “all the possibilities”
“I’m blessed because I’m having the proper preparation, from the fight itself to strength and conditioning, and even the nutrition,” he said.
He revealed, “For this training camp, we’ve got all the help I need to monitor my progress. We have a legitimate strength and conditioning coach, Kuya Vince [Loman], who has really focused on enhancing my explosiveness and speed. In the grappling aspect, of course, Professor Gibran Langbayan is here to help. Plus, he brought his younger brother, Godwin, with him. Godwin is one of the best jiu-jitsu practitioners in the Philippines and is part of the national sambo team.”
“In terms of the fight itself, we’ve done a lot of simulations to have a real feel of all the possibilities that could happen in the fight,” the fighter added.
Will all the preparations that Joshua Pacio went through with the Lions Nation MMA help him dethrone Jared Brooks? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.
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Gokul Pillai