Joshua Pacio excited to perform for ‘kababayans’ against Jarred Brooks in Qatar: “A huge Filipino market”

ONE strawweight MMA world champion Joshua Pacio is gearing up to settle the score with Jarred Brooks once and for all, but there is an extra layer of motivation driving him - his kababayans. The Filipino champ is eager to put on a good show for his countrymen in Qatar, where there is a massive Filipino presence.

In an exclusive interview with ONE, Pacio spoke of his thoughts about ONE 171:

"I expected the trilogy to be either here or Qatar. We all know that we have a huge Filipino market in Qatar. I sort of expected it. I was hoping it would be in the Mall of Asia Arena in Manila, but so be it."

Given the choice, Joshua Pacio would have preferred to perform in the Philippines, but 'The Passion' will take what he can get.

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Strawweight MMA champ Joshua Pacio reflects on fatal flaws in first fight against Jarred Brooks

With just over a week out from Joshua Pacio and Jarred Brooks' fated third encounter, 'The Passion' looks back at their first fight and sees exactly where things went wrong: his extreme focus in defending against takedowns had caused some blind spots. He told ONE:

"My error in that fight was just focusing on defense. I was too worried about getting taken down and I got stagnant. I wasn't moving. I was waiting for an opening, and that's my error. That's why he was able to land those clean shots."

Jarred Brooks, who grew up wrestling, had surprised many by outstriking the Filipino striker during their first fight. But 'The Passion' learns from his mistakes and this time around, he's adopting a more aggressive approach.

Watch the action go down at ONE 171: Qatar live at Lusail Sports Arena. It will also be available at watch.onefc.com.