Pacio eyes simultaneous weight classes

Days after being thrown onto the mat head first, almost being rendered senseless and winning a third ONE strawweight world title in Qatar, Joshua Pacio is back in his bailiwick of Benguet and dreaming even bigger. He prayed to not spend any time in the hospital, where he would’ve gone, stir crazy. He just wanted to go home.

Pacio believed he was a 100 percent ready going into this fight, a rematch with Jarred Brooks. Claiming it was the best camp he had ever had in his career, wrestling and jiu jitsu coaches, training included nutrition and strength and condition. The plan was to do damage in the first three rounds, then reap the benefits at the end of the bout.

However, Brooks was able to get a slight upper hand in the first round but could not capitalize. And in a moment of frustration perhaps, threw the Filipino onto the canvas downward head first, a very dangerous move that is forbidden in international mixed martial arts rules. After a few moments, the American nicknamed “The Monkey God” was disqualified, making “The Passion” king anew.

“I was half-conscious,” Pacio admits. “He hit me in the face, so that woke me up, and I was able to defend myself. I also saw how my teammate (Eduard Folayang) wasn’t thinking about the win or the DQ. His concern was that I had no fracture in my spine. He was with me in the hospital.”

Luckily, Pacio suffered only muscle damage, and was ordered not to train for three weeks, and take three months to fully recover. The team hurried back to the Philippines to make some audacious future plans.

“I want two weigh divisions at the same time,” Pacio told The STAR with a mischievous smile on his face. “It will be hard. But it will be exciting.”

But first things first. In a moment of reflection, Pacio says he will give Brooks the benefit of a third fight, to complete the trilogy. He understands that Brooks did not really want things to turn out that way, and will give him the chance to redeem his name. The passionate ruler shows compassion for a fellow warrior, before he goes on to claim two crowns at the same time.