After an impressive run of of six consecutive victories Rene “The Challenger” Catalan failed in his bid to annex the ONE Strawweight World Title.
The number three-ranked veteran lost by submission to champion Joshua “The Passion” Pacio last November.
Although already 41 years old Catalan is not losing hope and wants to prove himself worthy of another crack at the gold.
“I may be a bit older now, but make no mistake about it, I am still gunning for my dreams of one day winning a World Title,” said Catalan.
“I am willing to face anyone in order to get there, though I hope to avoid my fellow Filipinos.”
Clearly, Catalan would rather not face up and coming Filipino compatriot Lito “Thunder Kid” Adiwang.
However, he has three other men directly in his crosshairs. These are strawweight contenders Yosuke “The Ninja” Saruta, Yoshitaka “Nobita” Naito, and Alex “Little Rock” Silva.
Catalan would love a crack at Saruta, the former ONE Strawweight World Champion.
“Saruta is a very good athlete. He is really strong. I believe that if he did not make a mistake against Joshua Pacio (in April 2019), he would have defeated him again (and retained the ONE Strawweight World Title),” said Catalan.
A win over ranked challengers Naito or Silva will also propel Catalan right back into championship contention.
Silva beat Catalan by armbar in their previous encounter.
“If I face Silva again, I have to really focus on ground defense. It’s all about good preparation when facing someone as dangerous as him,” said Catalan.