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Friday, March 29, 2024

After taking up Martial Arts out of necessity, Pacatiw plans to pay it forward

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Jeremy “The Juggernaut” Pacatiw never imagined that he would be doing what he’s doing now, especially since his transition to martial arts came out of necessity.  

Pacatiw will be making his ONE Championship debut when he battles Chen “The Ghost” Rui at ONE: BATTLEGROUND this Friday, 30 July, at the Singapore Indoor Stadium. 

The Kapangan, Benguet, native admitted that he just wanted to use martial arts as a tool to finance his studies in college, but never did he expect that he would one day make a career out of it and represent the country in the largest martial arts organization in the world.  

“The only time I’ve ever experienced martial arts is when I was in college. Financially, we were lacking so I had to find ways for me to study and help out my parents,” he said. 

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“I really wanted to finish my studies. So when my aunt told me that there was a scholarship available for wushu athletes in U.C., I grabbed that opportunity – and I’m happy I passed the eye test.” 

But Pacatiw is a competitor through and through, as he took all of Mark Sangiao’s teachings to heart and eventually found himself enjoying what he’s doing.  

Excelling in wushu and showing great potential in mixed martial arts, Pacatiw, under Sangiao’s guidance, competed in PXC Laban Baguio and handily won his debut.  

The rest, as they say, is history.  

“At first, it was just really for the scholarship. I never thought that I’d transition to mixed martial arts and compete on an international stage. I just wanted to study and finish my program. But when I continued training, my mindset changed. I wanted to do this,” Pacatiw said.  

“I jumped over to mixed martial arts through the PXC Laban Baguio, coach Mark saw the potential, and thankfully I won my first bout – then the next one. Then I won again.” 

He then moved to the middle east, where he continued to turn heads with his slick movement on the feet and ever-evolving game, resulting in a call from ONE Championship.  

Now that he’s finally made it, the goal for Pacatiw is to pay it forward and inspire more kids to use martial arts, either as a stepping stone to study or as a career.  

“I want to show kids and everyone following me that nothing is impossible. There will be setbacks, there will be losses, but you have to show that you are a fighter. You strive to be better, you keep moving forward amid the setbacks,” he said.   

“I also have to show that I’m a good role model. I have to show that [positive] attitude and discipline. I have to be the role model for them.” 

Catch ONE: BATTLEGROUND at One Sports and One Sports+ this Friday, 30 July. It will cut to live broadcast at 9 p.m. Philippine Standard Time (PHT) or following the conclusion of the preceding live PVL (Premier Volleyball League) game. 

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