FREE FULL FIGHT: Joshua Pacio exacts revenge against Yoshitaka Naito to capture first strawweight MMA world title

In the ever-popular realm of MMA, the Philippines has a handful of names bannering the next generation with homegrown strawweight star Joshua Pacio leading the charge.

‘The Passion’ is among the promotion’s most recognizable stars of today thanks to his explosive knockout power and willingness to never back down from a challenge despite outside observers’ thoughts about him being in a mismatch.

Since debuting in 2016, Pacio already has 12 wins with eight finishes and was immediately thrust into the ONE strawweight MMA world championship picture by his third fight against Yoshitaka Naito in October of that year.

Pacio’s quality was already on full display during that bout as he pushed Naito to his own limits, but the Japanese star’s veteran experience shone through and was able to lock in a rear-naked choke.

However, he would force the matchmakers’ hand into booking a rematch for 2019 as he produced three straight wins - all of them being highly impressive finishes.

This time though, Pacio’s maturity inside the ONE Circle would help him upend Naito, leaving with both the unanimous decision win and his first reign atop the strawweight MMA division.

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Joshua Pacio prepared for rivalry rematch

The Filipino is currently headed for the co-main event of ONE 166 as he meets Jarred Brooks once more with the ONE strawweight MMA world championship on the line on Friday, March 1.

Pacio is expecting that his fellow Filipinos in Qatar will pour out their support for him inside the Lusail Sports Arena, just like how they went all-out for him against ‘The Monkey God’ in Manila in December 2022.

ONE 166 is available live and free on Prime Video in the United States and Canada.