ONE Chairman and CEO Chatri Sityodtong searched for words to describe Joshua “The Passion” Pacio ONE Strawweight World Title defense at ONE: REVOLUTION on Friday as the Filipino’s performance was so good that the Chief Executive Officer could only respond with awe.
Pacio needed under one round to dispatch #1-ranked Yosuke “The Ninja” Saruta and put a lid on their historic rivalry, ending the bout with punches at the 3:38 mark of the first canto.
According to Sityodtong, the Team Lakay athlete’s performance showed his brilliance and was even more impressive considering Pacio was once sidelined because of the pandemic.
“I’m just blown away by Joshua Pacio’s performance tonight. He made it look easy,” Sityodtong said.
“I know Team Lakay had a bunch of members who had COVID this year. I was a little concerned about ring rust for Joshua, but he just destroyed Yosuke. It was not even close.”
Pacio’s continuous reign means that the next generation of Team Lakay stars still has a homegrown World Champion to look up to.
That said, Sityodtong also praised Pacio’s peers in Jenelyn Olsim and Jeremy “The Juggernaut” Pacatiw, both of whom had successful debuts this year in The Home Of Martial Arts.
That’s why the Chairman and CEO cannot wait for the next wave of young athletes from Team Lakay to take centerstage, especially Stephen “The Sniper’ Loman and Jhanlo Sangiao, who are expected to make their respective debuts soon.
“The Team Lakay guys, I’m really blown away by the younger generation. I can’t wait for Jhanlo Sangiao’s debut. I can’t wait for Stephen Loman’s debut,” he continued.
“Team Lakay is genuinely one of the greatest teams on the planet. Full stop.”
ONE Championship returns to live action with ONE: FIRST STRIKE on October 15. Download the ONE Super App for more details on the event.
