There were a lot of head-turning performances at ONE 171: Qatar last week, but for ONE Chairman and CEO Chatri Sityodtong, one stood out from the rest.
The ONE boss pinpointed Joshua Pacio’s trilogy-clinching win over Jarred Brooks in the main event as the best among all the impressive feats inside Lusail Sports Arena in Doha, Qatar, on February 20.
Sityodtong praised Pacio for overcoming the underdog label and surviving everything that Brooks threw at him in a crazy first round.
Pacio had to fend off a bevy of choke attempts from the American wrestler, chokes that were oftentimes deep. But the Filipino was not only tough, he was skilled enough to maneuver his way out of those precarious positions.
“I think the main event, from my understanding, Jarred Brooks was a three-to-one favorite. So that fight was crazy. I mean, the first round for four minutes at least [it looked like it],” Sityodtong said.
“But you know, hats off to Joshua. Joshua, finishing a guy like Jarred? There’s nobody, no expert around the world, who said Joshua Pacio is going to finish Jarred Brooks in the second round,” he added.
“So that, for me, was probably the best performance of the night.”
After surviving every Brooks’ attempt at a finish in the first, Pacio turned the tides on the American. He caught “The Monkey God’s” body kick and countered with a wushu trip to end up on top.
From then on it was all Pacio as the Filipino blasted away from the mount to secure the TKO win and remain unbeaten in rematches while finishing off another trilogy on top.
For Sityodtong, that win leaves no doubt as to who the best 125-pounder in the world is right now.
“Joshua cemented his status as the number one strawweight in the world,” he said. “There’s no question about that. There’s no question. That was an epic performance.”