Joshua Pacio eager to beat Mansur Malachiev by any means necessary: “I’m going to stop him”

Filipino strawweight MMA fighter Joshua Pacio enters his scheduled match this week with dogged determination to win whichever way possible.

‘The Passion’ returns to action on October 6 in Bangkok at ONE Fight Night 15 on Prime Video. He will be taking on Russian Mansur Malachiev in a featured strawweight contest, part of the eight-fight offering happening at the Lumpinee Boxing Stadium.

It will be Joshua Pacio’s first fight back since losing the ONE strawweight world title back in December to American Jarred Brooks.

In an interview with ONE Championship, the 27-year-old Lions Nation MMA fighter said he is going for a victory against Mansur Malachiev wherever it takes him, saying:

“Of course, I want to win in spectacular fashion, I want to stop him. But I know what my opponent is capable of. If I could predict, I feel like this will be a three-rounder.

“But don’t get me wrong, I’m working on things and we’re cooking a game plan that, if I execute well, will mean I’m going to stop him.”

Prior to losing to Brooks, Joshua Pacio successfully defended the strawweight gold three times. He is now looking to record a bounce-back victory to get another shot at the world title.

For the fight at hand, he is marking a fresh start after leaving his longtime camp of Team Lakay earlier this year as part of his push to expand his horizon and further grow as a fighter.

Apart from training with his team at Lions Nation MMA, Joshua Pacio also made the rounds of different gyms in the United States to shore up his skills and come up with a winning performance.

Mansur Malachiev, for his part, is looking to continue his dominance over Filipino fighters after defeating Jeremy Miado by submission (D’Arce choke) in the opening round of his promotional debut in June.

ONE Fight Night 15 will air live in US primetime free of charge for existing Prime Video subscribers in North America.