Joshua Pacio Has Put In The Sweat And Developed Now He's Ready For The ONE Strawweight's Biggest Mat

ONE Championship holds an open workout for fans and media at the SM Mall of Asia on September 27 in Manila, Philippines

To make the local fans more amped for the upcoming fights of the Filipino warriors, the promotion set this event in addition to the interviews. One of the featured fighters was Joshua Felix Pacio. He workout, meet fans in Manila and face the media before headlining the ONE: State of Warriors on October 7.

This 20 year-old warrior from Baguio's Team Lakay have won all eight of his pro bouts and have been undefeated throughout these competitions. And to nobody's surprise, Joshua Pacio Gets The Title Shot He Rightfully Deserved.

Pacio's story of his pre fight with Kritsada Kongsrichai at ONE Championship 45: Heroes of the World truly inspired me. It made me more proud being a Filipino.

"Nung nasa Macau ako may mga nakasalubong akong mga Pinoy, sabi ko kinakabahan ako sa laban ko. Pero sabi nila, kaya mo yan! Pinoy ka eh." (I met these  Filipinos in Macau and told them I'm nervous about my fight. You can you're Filipino! they answered.)

"Hindi lang sa MMA mag excel ang Pinoy kundi sa lahat ng aspects. Globally competitive ang Pinoy." (Not only in MMA Filipinos can excel but in all aspects. Filipinos are globally competitive.)

Who would've thought that this young man having won so much still feels nervous. Joshua can competitively answers the question thrown at him as well.

My interview with ONE strawweight contender Joshua Pacio. He will challenge the current champ in the said division Yoshitaka Naito on Oct 7 in Myanmar. Write-up coming soon 👊✊ #onechampionship #onefc #mma #one #onefightnight #oss #wushu #bjj #boxing #judo #karate #wrestling #kickboxing #muaythai #joshuapacio #teamlakay #pinoypride #itsmorefuninthephilippines #baguio #fighter #workout #marriedtobasketball

A video posted by αρρℓε 🍎 (@apltanmamba) on Sep 27, 2016 at 12:21pm PDT

We had the honor to one-on-one interview Joshua Pacio. These are the questions I asked him:

What did you ever feel when the title fight was announced?
"When it was announced of course I was shocked and felt a little bit nervous but as days gone by I came to realized that this is a once in a life time opportunity and a blessing for me, not only for me but for the whole team and my country Philippines."

With a quite impressive defeat less record, this is already the fruit of your hardwork, passion and determination, your thoughts.
"In my 10 years of training martial arts, to fight in a title bout is an unexplainable feeling, and if i bring that belt here in my country that i always pray for is the fruit of my hardwork and the hardwork of the team."

Toughest opponent outside ONE FC?
"It's when I fought Jonel Borbon in PXC Laban MMA Baguio 2. Cause even If I was pounding him hard he didn't give up and I felt his power."

Toughest opponent in ONE cage?
"I think my toughest fight in ONE is both Rabin Catalan and Kritsada. Robin is also a Pinoy. And as you can see in our previous fight he brings it on and Kritsada is an Olympian wrestler so he is very strong and he takes me down a lot."

Fighter you look up to?
"I look up to my seniors like Coach Eduard, Honorio, Edward Kelly, Geje, Kevin and of course coach Mark because they are the ones who motivated and trained me to be one of them who is fighting internationally and representing our country in big stage like OneFC."

Any rituals you do before the fight?
"Everyday I pray to God to and before the fight I pray for my srrength and protection and also the protection of my opponent."

How were you able to manage your study and career?
"I manage my studies and training by getting a minimum of 12 units. And I make sure that my training doesn't affect my schedule in school ."

If you didn't become an MMA fighter, what would you be today?
"I think I'm a one big fat guy eating burger in front of the TV watching and dreaming about becoming a fighter. Haha."

Message to all the fans who believes in you.
"To all my kababayan and the fans who believe in me and in Team Lakay, I thank you for your never ending support and prayers, para sa atin po lahat ito. Godbless us all"

What nickname would you like to put in between the Joshua Pacio?
"My monicker? It depends on the crowd or the name people will give me. Ayos yung binigay mo na 'The Passion' sakin ma'am."

A dream doesn’t become reality through magic. It takes sweat, hard work and passion. Joshua Pacio getting where he is now is the real sense of fulfillment that comes from those.

Let us support Joshua Felix Pacio and pray for his journey and victory at ONE: State of Warriors on October 7 as well as Eduard Folayang at ONE: Defending Honor on November 13 and Brandon Vera who will defend his heavyweight title first week of December this year.