By JAN CARLO ANOLIN
ONE Strawweight World Champion Joshua Pacio believes that whoever comes up with a ‘well-rounded’ game will emerge victorious as he faces Alex Silva in the main event of ONE: Fire and Fury at the Mall of Asia Arena on Friday.
Pacio, a striking specialist, said there is no room for panic and complacency if the battle eventually leads to the ground despite knowing that his Brazilian foe might bring out his A-game in jiu-jitsu.
The 24-year-old champion focused on ground drills and how to escape and counter Silva when push comes to shove. To top it all, Pacio will still rely on striking, considering it as his bread and butter.
“What’s matters most is mag uunahan kayo. Sa game ng MMA, unahan lang yan,” Pacio said during the ONE: Fire & Fury open workout at One Esplanade in Pasay City.
“Kung magaling ka sa striking [pero] naunahan ka sa ground, tapos na. Pero kahit magaling ka sa ground kung naunahan ka [naman] sa striking, tapos ka. Kung sino ang well-rounded athlete talaga siya mananalo.”
Pacio said fighting Japanese Yoshitaka Naito in September 2018, describing him as one of the best grapplers in the division, gave him the confidence to go up against another fighter who specializes on ground game.
It can be recalled that Naito also defeated Silva last May 2019. Knowing these, Pacio remained grounded: “Pero ‘wag pa rin tayong magkompyansa.”
The Baguio native champion said Silva “was born to be a warrior” after witnessing how the Brazilian fighter improved in the striking department from previous fights.
With that being said, Silva won’t just take the battle to the ground.
“My style is grappling but I think to get the victory I need to put all my skills together and we’ll see what happens,” the former strawweight champion said.
