Eduard Folayang believes Joshua Pacio's title win will inspire young guns at Lions Nation MMA: "They want to be champions"

Former ONE lightweight MMA world champion Eduard Folayang is happy to see teammate Joshua Pacio recently reclaim the strawweight gold. He believes it will only serve to inspire those who are following their footsteps at their team Lions Nation MMA.

Two of the stalwarts of the newly formed martial arts group, Folayang and Pacio are trying to set the pace for their team as it continues to build its legs and position itself to be among the top groups in the Philippines.

Joshua Pacio reclaimed the ONE strawweight MMA world title at ONE 166: Qatar on March 1. It, however, came not the way he envisioned it, getting the victory after erstwhile world champion Jarred Brooks was disqualified in the opening round of their title rematch after executing an illegal move.

'The Monkey God' earned an automatic DQ for his illegal spike of 'The Passion,' who hit the canvas head first. Such a move is prohibited under ONE Championship rules for the potential danger it could bring to fighters.

The disqualification forced Brooks to give up his world title in favor of Pacio, from whom he took the championship belt in their first title showdown in December 2022.

In an interview that came out in the Inquirer, Folayang spoke of the significance of the title win of Pacio, particularly to the young talents at Lions Nation MMA, saying:

"I think it's very important especially once you start talking about inspiration. We have a lot of young talents. And they want to be champions. Seeing a belt in the flesh will get them disciplined, [make them] work even harder."

Joshua Pacio escaped serious injury from the illegal spike he had to endure at ONE 166 but is still recuperating. He is looking to facing off with Brooks for a third time to settle their unfinished business at some point.

ONE 166 was held at the Lusail Sports Arena in Qatar. Its replay is available for free to North American viewers with an active Prime Video subscription.

Joshua Pacio wants younger teammates to have an opportunity to compete under ONE Championship

Joshua Pacio has had a lot of success competing under ONE Championship. He wants his younger teammates at Lions Nation MMA to experience the same, especially when the promotion returns to the Philippines.

One of the seniors in the newly formed martial arts group, along with former ONE world champions Eduard Folayang, Honorio Banario, and Kevin Belingon, Pacio shared that up-and-coming fighters within their organization are looking forward to showcasing their skills under the lights of ONE Championship. He is hopeful they get their chance this year.

'The Passion' told The MMA Superfan in an interview:

"I really hope ONE Championship returns to the Philippines this year, they've been really waiting for that. The cubs [our young guns], they can't wait to get their opportunity as well. Everyone is happy."

ONE strawweight MMA world champion Pacio landed in Lions Nation MMA after leaving his longtime camp Team Lakay early last year to expand his horizon as a fighter.