“Test my skills against my idol” - Joshua Pacio would love to fight Demetrious Johnson
On Saturday, December 3, Joshua Pacio will defend his ONE strawweight world championship for the third time against the No.1-ranked strawweight contender, ‘The Monkey God’ Jarred Brooks. The two warriors will headline ONE 164 as ONE Championship will close out 2022 with a bang in Pacio’s backyard of Manilla, Philippines
Returning to the Mall of Asia Arena in Manila, fans will be treated to an epic doubleheader featuring four massive world title fights, all capped off by a strawweight world title showcase. Just days out from the highly-anticipated scrap, Joshua Pacio appeared on JM Siasat’s Sparring Sessions podcast to discuss the ONE 164 headliner.
During the conversation, ‘The Passion’ was asked about what may come next should he successfully defend his crown against ‘The Monkey God’ on Friday night. Joshua Pacio replied saying:
“If given a chance, I would like to test my skills against my idol since I was in high school Demetrious Johnson. But that’s not the main goal. I know that my teammate there Danny Kingad will be a champion very soon.”
With Demetrious Johnson’s ONE world title win at ONE on Prime Video 1 and recent talks of retiring in the next couple of years, everyone is looking to get their moment inside the circle with one of the pound-for-pound greatest fighters of all time.
Demetrious Johnson believes Jarred Brooks can beat Joshua Pacio at ONE 164
ONE Championship’s flyweight world titleholder Demetrious Johnson believes we could see a new world champion crowned at ONE 164. With both Jarred Brooks and Joshua Pacio eyeing a potential champion vs. champion matchup with 'DJ' before he calls it a career, ‘Mighty Mouse’ will undoubtedly have his eyes on the eagerly-awaited main event.
Sharing his thoughts on the upcoming contest with ONE Championship, Johnson believes that Brooks’ constant pressure could lead to his success inside the circle next Saturday night:
“He's been doing amazing things and I think he'll probably give Joshua Pacio his toughest test if not beat him. Because he has that constant, constant, constant pressure and grind."
As if the ONE strawweight world title fight wasn’t enough, ONE Championship has stacked the ONE 164 lineup with a series of massive fights, including the ONE Flyweight Muay Thai World Grand Prix Championship Final between Superlek Kiatmoo9 and Panpayak Jitmuangnon. The event will also feature the return of former ONE heavyweight world champion Brandon Vera.
You can watch ONE 164 live and for free on ONE Championship’s YouTube channel in North America on Saturday, December 3.