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After receiving the green light to resume intensive training after ACL surgery, Joshua Pacio is ecstatic to right the wrong from his last appearance inside the Circle.
'The Passion' was on the receiving end of a nasty slam from Jarred Brooks at ONE 166: Qatar last March. That violent fall that spiked the Filipino on his neck warranted 'The Monkey God' immediate disqualification.
While Pacio regained the strawweight MMA world title by default, it certainly wasn't the way he wanted things to end. After all, a great number of Filipino contingent flocked to Lusail Sports Arena to witness him fight, just to see him leave on a stretcher.
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Now back to full health, it's only fitting that the trilogy between these two heated rivals take place in the same arena in the promotion's return to the Middle East at ONE 171: Qatar on Feb. 20, 2025.
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Speaking in an interview on The MMA Superfan, Joshua Pacio admitted that he will be seeking poetic justice in the same place where the freak accident occurred.
"There are really a lot of Filipinos there who will watch and they will surely be looking out for my match with Brooks. Like you said, that’s where the ‘crime scene’ happened."
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Rewatch Pacio vs Brooks II, here:
Joshua Pacio glad his road to full recovery went ahead of schedule
Things looked grim for newly crowned strawweight MMA kingpin Joshua Pacio after an MRI revealed he needed to undergo knee surgery.
'The Passion', though, trusted the process and did his best behind closed doors to recuperate from his injury.
His hard work definitely paid off, as he got cleared ahead of schedule and will now unify the strawweight MMA world titles against interim champ Jarred Brooks at ONE 171.
The Lions Nation MMA product told The MMA Superfan:
"As an athlete, I'm so happy and so grateful. This is the only thing that we've been waiting for, to be able to fight again."
Watch the interview in its entirety:
