“Victories taste sweeter” - Joshua Pacio reflects on his first loss to Jarred Brooks after claiming undisputed gold at ONE 171

Joshua Pacio made sure he would stop by the site of the worst loss of his career just a couple of days after his biggest victory.

The undisputed ONE strawweight MMA world champion unified the division's gold when he stopped archrival Jarred Brooks in the main event of the stacked ONE 171: Qatar card on Feb. 20 at Lusail Sports Arena.

Upon arriving in the Philippines, Pacio and his teammates at Lions Nation MMA stopped by Mall of Asia Arena in Manila -- the same stadium where he lost the ONE strawweight MMA world title to Brooks in December 2022.

In an interview with Filipino journalist Nissi Icasiano, Joshua Pacio reflected on his earlier defeat and manifested a world title defense in front of his home fans in the Philippines.

"Satisfying and victories come sweeter when you taste losses like that. Right now I am happy and ready to defend it [my belt] maybe in this arena. Hopefully, ONE Championship will be back in Manila, maybe this year."

Manila has always been a stronghold for ONE Championship, with some of the promotion's biggest cards happening in the Philippine capital.

The last time the city hosted a card, however, ended in heartbreak for Pacio.

Nevertheless, Pacio atoned for that defeat when he scored an absolute showstopper in the main event of ONE 171.

Pacio weathered a grappling storm from Brooks in the first round of their trilogy match before he unleashed his fury in the second round.

After catching a wayward roundhouse kick, Pacio got into mount and battered Brooks' midsection to effectively drain the American star's gas tank.

Pacio then swung for the fences and launched into a frenzied flurry forcing the referee to call a stop to the contest 4:22 into the second round.

Fans can watch replays of ONE 171 on-demand at watch.onefc.com.

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Joshua Pacio thanks Qatar's Filipino community for overwhelming support

Joshua Pacio may have been an ocean away from the Philippines during ONE 171, but the support he received felt as if he never left his front porch.

'The Passion' basked in the overwhelming support of Qatar's Filipino community when he captured the undisputed ONE strawweight MMA world title against Joshua Pacio at Lusail Sports Arena.

In his post-fight interview with Mitch Chilson, Joshua Pacio thanked the Filipino contingent that flocked to the arena to watch him in person:

"That’s why I call it a home away from home. Thank you, Filipinos. Filipinos are very globally competitive all over the world. Filipinos are there. Thank you very much."