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| Joshua “The Passion” Pacio and Yosuke “Tobizaru” Saruta come face-to-face for ONE: ETERNAL GLORY Photo from OneFC.com |
Joshua “The Passion” Pacio and Yosuke “Tobizaru” Saruta met for the first time before their much-awaited main event bout at ONE: ETERNAL GLORY. And both camps are determined to bring home the much-coveted ONE Strawweight World Title.
Two two strawweight fighters met at the official open workout at the Syena Martial Arts Center in Jakarta, Indonesia last Jan. 16 (Wednesday) as both camps head to their final preparations for their world title bout this coming Jan. 19th (Saturday) at the Istora Senayan.
Defend the Title
Pacio, who took away the ONE Championship Strawweight title from Yoshitaka Naito, feels that he is "at my best right now” as the event inches closer. “After a tremendous training camp, I’m ready to step up to the plate and defend my title,” Pacio said as posted on OneFC.com.Should Yosuke Saruta worry about the man he's going to face this Saturday? Why not? Pacio is on a four-fight winning streak, the last fight against Japan’s Yoshitaka Naito, earning him the ONE Strawweight crown.
Taking the cue from the defending champion, Saruta's definitely in for a long, grueling night. “Yosuke is a very dangerous opponent, and I am not taking him lightly," Pacio said. The ONE Strawweight champion added, "I have prepared for the toughest challenge of my career, and I plan to showcase the best version of Joshua Pacio in the fight.”
Making a Statement
Make no mistake - the man who wants to end Pacio's dream is no pushover. In fact, in his ONE Championship debut in December, Saruta defeated former ONE Strawweight World Champion Alex “Little Rock” Silva. This fight actually earned him the shot at Pacio's title.
“When I made my debut," Saruta said, "I wanted to make a statement. I wanted to prove to the world that I am ready for a title shot immediately. That is what I have done, and now we are here.”
Though the former Shooto Strawweight World Champion praises his opponent for being a great champion, he believes that he has the necessary tools necessary to defeat Pacio.
