Pacio awaits winner between Brooks, Masunyane (Sabong News)
Author
Carlo Anolin
Date
APRIL 11 2022
Reigning ONE strawweight champion Joshua Pacio made sure to do his homework in scouting future opponents Bokang Masunyane and Jarred Brooks.
Top-ranked Masunyane and No. 2 contender Brooks are set to clash in a world title eliminator match in ONE: Eersel vs Sadikovic on April 22 at the Singapore Indoor Stadium.
Now in the waiting game, Pacio, who’s consistently training in Baguio City, isn’t rooting for anyone. Either way, he’s going to face the victor soon for his four straight title defense.
The 26-year-old Igorot warrior, however, described that both fighters have similar styles, wanting to control their opponents and deliver the punishment later on.
Weighing in on the match, Pacio had a little breakdown of the pros and cons between the two strawweight stars.
“I think Bokang’s advantage for this fight is his athleticism. He is a very explosive athlete. Meanwhile, Brooks’ advantage is his experience. He has fought some of the best, and it might be where Bokang will fall short,” said Pacio.
The Team Lakay stalwart last saw action in September 2021 with a technical knockout win over Japanese rival Yosuke Saruta to improve at 19-3 record.
His win sealed the deal to their trilogy after facing each other twice in 2019.
Despite fighting twice only in the Singapore-based promotion, Masunyane propelled himself at the top with back-to-back wins against Ryuto Sawada and Rene Catalan.
The unbeaten South African fighter, who has eight straight wins, however, has not seen action since December 2020 which might pose a problem against a veteran like Brooks.
Brooks, for his part, showed dominance against top contenders with two victories at hand against Team Lakay’s Lito Adiwang and Hiroba Minowa. He has 18 wins with only two losses, both coming from previous bouts in UFC Fight Night.
