"Whatever is said, the belt is here" - Joshua Pacio pleased to regain MMA gold despite unexpected ending against Jarred Brooks
Joshua Pacio reclaimed the ONE strawweight MMA world championship at ONE 166: Qatar in less-than-ideal circumstances. His huge rematch with Jarred Brooks was one of three MMA world championship rematches featuring at the top of the card on March 1.
The fight came to a sudden end in the opening round after Pacio was unintentionally spiked on his head, declaring him the winner via disqualification.
Though he didn't realize it at the time, 'The Passion' had reclaimed the gold, and while he knows there is still unfinished business with Brooks, he is glad to be back in possession of the coveted strap.
Joshua Pacio spoke about how all this came to happen and his thoughts on winning back the belt in this fashion in a recent interview with The MMA Superfan:
"I think, well we now have a belt. By God's grace, this was his plan. No one can stop this, if it's God's time no one can stop it. If it's not God's time, then you can force it, so I think it's God's time. Whatever is said, the belt is here, the belt is here at Lions Nation MMA, the belt is here in Cordillera, the belt is here in the Phillippines."
Watch the full interview below:
Joshua Pacio knows that Jarred Brooks will be coming to reclaim the title
The strawweight gold has now been passed back and forth between Jarred Brooks and Joshua Pacio through their two fights against one another.
Their first encounter at ONE 164 saw Brooks dethrone the champion to improve his winning streak in the promotion that saw him ascend the rankings with each performance.
Now that Pacio is back with the title, a trilogy fight between them will be a massive moment for the division and the future of the belt.
The strawweight world championship will always have a part of its history dedicated to both competitors and their rivalry that is still yet to have an ending.
North American viewers that missed out on any of the action from ONE 166: Qatar can rewatch the entire event via the free on-demand replay on Prime Video.