“My fuel for this fight” – Joshua Pacio says defeat to Jarred Brooks has ignited a fire inside him ahead of ONE 166 rematch

Joshua Pacio has left no stone unturned as he shifts into gear for his Jarred Brooks rematch at ONE 166: Qatar on March 1.

The former ONE strawweight MMA world champion dropped his prized possession to ‘The Monkey God’ in the main event of ONE 164 in December 2022, but he heads into this clash as an evolved athlete armed with a desire for revenge.

While the loss was a tough truth for ‘The Passion’ to accept, he’s used it as a motivational tool to formulate a better gameplan against the divisional king when they meet inside the Lusail Sports Arena for ONE Championship’s debut card in the region.

Speaking to The Peninsula Qatar, Joshua Pacio said:

“That disappointment lingered within me for a long time. Now, I’m turning that disappointment into my fuel for this fight.”

Truth be told, a motivated Pacio is a scary prospect for anyone. Plus, the Lions Nation MMA athlete never fails to get things right at the second time of asking.

Before his loss to the Mash Fight Team star, the 28-year-old has avenged two of his three defeats – twice against Yosuke Saruta and another against Yoshitaka Naito.

The Filipino warrior suffered a career-first MMA defeat to Naito at ONE: State of Warriors in October 2016 and went down to Saruta via split decision at ONE: Eternal Glory in January 2019.

If history is anything to go by, ‘The Passion’ should come out on top in this world title thriller at ONE 166: Qatar on March 1.

The entire card will air live on pay-per-view at watch.onefc.com.

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Joshua Pacio says he isn’t ‘The Rematch King’

Although Joshua Pacio’s resume suggests that he typically aces a rematch, the star himself does not want to associate his name with the label.

Instead, the 28-year-old is focused on things within his control, and he hopes to address it when he gets locked inside the Circle against ‘The Monkey God’ at the start of next month.

In a past interview with The MMA Superfan, the ex-divisional king shared:

“To be honest, I don’t really think much about me being ‘The Rematch King’ or whatnot. I’m adjusting my mind to put all my focus on Brooks and what he’ll bring to the table in the rematch.”