“Keep inspring, champ” - Lito Adiwang delivers a message to former teammate and strawweight king Joshua Pacio
ONE strawweight contender Lito Adiwang is glad that former teammate and current ONE strawweight MMA world champion Joshua Pacio is now in stable condition from the neck injury he sustained from his last fight against Jarred Brooks at ONE 166: Qatar last March 1 inside the Lusail Sports Arena.
Pacio reclaimed the 26-pound golden belt via first-round disqualification victory after being on the receiving end of an unintentional illegal spike from Brooks, which prematurely ended their world title rematch.
In a recent interview with Sportskeeda MMA, Adiwang was asked to give a message to his old pal Pacio for his latest triumph. 'Thunder Kid' wished 'The Passion' all the best in his recovery and his third reign as the undisputed 125-pound king, as Adiwang said:
"My message to Joshua, firstly is Congratulations! I'm happy for you for getting your belt back, especially knowing that you are okay from that scary slam. Keep the faith and keep inspiring, champ."
Lito Adiwang and Pacio were former members of the famed Team Lakay of Baguio City, sharing several years of success under the tutelage of Coach Mark Sangiao before they joined the exodus of members last year.
Since leaving the famous stable, the 31-year-old Filipino has fled to Indonesia to join SOMA Fight Club, headed by Mike Ikilei and Yousef Wehbe.
Lito Adiwang is open to fighting Joshua Pacio for the title when the time is right
Lito Adiwang is currently on a hot three-fight win streak after beating Adrian Mattheis, Jeremy Miado, and Danial Williams to redeem himself after previously absorbing back-to-back losses and sustaining a leg injury.
If he keeps on piling the wins, Adiwang will be on the championship trajectory and might soon challenge Pacio for the title in the event that he remains the world champion. Fighting his former teammate is something that Adiwang is not closing on the possibility of.
North American viewers with an active Prime Video subscription can rewatch all the action from ONE 166: Qatar via the free event replay.