{"id":782980,"date":"2026-07-06T16:34:08","date_gmt":"2026-07-06T16:34:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/782980\/"},"modified":"2026-07-06T16:34:08","modified_gmt":"2026-07-06T16:34:08","slug":"still-my-biggest-edge-joshua-pacio-banks-on-experience-in-mansur-malachiev-rematch-at-the-inner-circle-21","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/782980\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018Still My Biggest Edge\u2019 \u2013 Joshua Pacio Banks On Experience In Mansur Malachiev Rematch At The Inner Circle 21"},"content":{"rendered":"

The version of reigning ONE Strawweight MMA World Champion Joshua \u201cThe Passion\u201d Pacio<\/a> that defeated Mansur Malachiev<\/a> was formidable, but the martial artist stepping into The Inner Circle 21<\/a> on Friday, July 10, operates on an entirely different level.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The highly anticipated rematch goes down live in Asia primetime on Friday, July 10, from Bangkok\u2019s historic Lumpinee Stadium, streaming exclusively for members on live.onefc.com<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n

When they first met at ONE Fight Night 15<\/a> in October 2023, the two men engaged in a grueling tactical chess match. Pacio landed the more damaging strikes and proved incredibly lethal off his back with constant submission threats, ultimately securing a hard-earned unanimous decision.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Much has changed since that night. The Filipino returned from a partially torn ACL to close his epic trilogy with former ONE Strawweight MMA World Champion Jarred \u201cThe Monkey God\u201d Brooks<\/a> in emphatic fashion, claiming undisputed gold.\u00a0<\/p>\n

However, a daring bid for two-division supremacy against then-reigning ONE Flyweight MMA World Champion Yuya \u201cLittle Piranha\u201d Wakamatsu<\/a> ultimately fell short. Those battles, won and lost, have forged a more seasoned and battle-tested fighter.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Passion\u201d recalled:<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was a close match. I think until now he still hasn\u2019t accepted that he lost. I believe I have grown since that fight. Even though I won, I still haven\u2019t shown my best version in that match.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m a more complete athlete now. My striking, wrestling, grappling have all leveled up. Of course, my experience. I\u2019ve been doing five rounds since I was 22 years old, so that\u2019s still my biggest edge.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

That lone defeat only fueled Malachiev to embark on a vengeful warpath. The Dagestani juggernaut strung together three consecutive victories over world-class opposition, defeating Bokang \u201cLittle Giant\u201d Masunyane<\/a> and former ONE Strawweight MMA World Champion Yosuke \u201cThe Ninja\u201d Saruta<\/a>. He punctuated that run at ONE Fight Night 36<\/a> by putting Brooks to sleep with a north-south choke.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Recognizing this undeniable momentum, Pacio knows he is staring down a far deadlier force than the man he outclassed nearly three years ago.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The Lions Nation MMA representative said:<\/p>\n

\u201cHe definitely improved, especially that last fight with Jarred Brooks. What I saw is his wrestling improved even more. I think his striking is also catching up.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen he fought Saruta, he was hitting his mark. I think he caught him with a left hook at one point, so his striking has also gotten better. He\u2019s starting to use his reach advantage much better.\u201d<\/p>\n

While Malachiev looks sharper standing up, Pacio doubts he will risk prolonged striking exchanges against a wushu-bred striker of his caliber.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The Russian will almost certainly revert to the dreaded Dagestani wrestling that has defined his rise and terrorized the division. Pacio has already weathered that storm and knows exactly what is coming.\u00a0<\/p>\n

He stated:<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019ll stick to his bread-and-butter. He\u2019s going to shoot for that takedown. I\u2019ve already proven I can handle it before. In our first match, he was a bit too confident. He was shooting so far out. I don\u2019t think he\u2019ll be doing that again after our first match. I think he\u2019ll set up his shots better this time.\u201d<\/p>\n

Pacio Ready To Author The Next Chapter Of His Reign<\/p>\n

Joshua Pacio carries a distinct psychological edge into this rematch, having already bested the man standing across from him. Yet the Baguio native has never been one to lean on past accomplishments.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Passion\u201d approaches this sequel unburdened by history. While Malachiev remains fixated on rewriting the past, Pacio steps in focused purely on proving his own growth.\u00a0<\/p>\n

He explained:<\/p>\n

\u201cAlthough this is a rematch, I never look at it that way. I treat this as a brand new fight, a new slate for both of us. That\u2019s my mindset heading into this one. For him, he\u2019s still caught up in our last match. He believes he won.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor me, I have moved on a long time ago. I don\u2019t have to prove anything to him. If there\u2019s anything to prove, it\u2019s for myself. I just want to show myself that my skill level has increased since our first fight.\u201d<\/p>\n

Both men enter as evolved, more dangerous versions of themselves, and five championship rounds ensure this rivalry finds its most explosive chapter yet.\u00a0<\/p>\n

For Pacio, July 10 means one thing \u2014 reasserting his dominance, deepening his legacy, and keeping the gold exactly where it has always belonged.\u00a0<\/p>\n

He declared:<\/p>\n

\u201cYou can expect an exciting and explosive rematch. You can expect this rematch to top our first fight. At the end of the night, my hand will be raised. Whether it\u2019s a decision, knockout, or submission, I\u2019ll find a way to win.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The version of reigning ONE Strawweight MMA World Champion Joshua \u201cThe Passion\u201d Pacio that defeated Mansur Malachiev was…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":782981,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[570],"tags":[64,63,786,785,85],"class_list":["post-782980","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-mma","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-fighting","tag-mma","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/782980","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=782980"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/782980\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/782981"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=782980"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=782980"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=782980"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}