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Rene Catalan has been in ONE Championship since 2013 and has been very patriotic while representing the Philippines in his fights. 'D' Challenger' has always stressed that he doesn't want to fight another Filipino fighter but times have changed.
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At 42 years old, Catalan knows that he is at the tail-end of his fighting career. His main goal right now is to win the ONE Championship strawweight title at any cost.
The founder of the Catalan Fighting System discussed the decision to decline to fight Joshua Pacio back in May 2019 in an interview with Sportskeeda.
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"I was offered to fight him in May 2019 but I declined. I said that I don’t want to fight another Filipino fighter, anybody but not another Filipino. I have been carrying the Filipino flag in competitions for the longest time and then I will face a fellow Filipino? It was just by chance because at that time I was the top-ranked fighter to fight him. I was not full-hearted enough to fight Pacio but I still have to do it."
Catalan still feels that he doesn't want to fight Pacio for the world title again but if things go well in his upcoming fight against Alex Silva, he would welcome the chance to compete for the title.
"Right now, I have no 100% desire to fight Joshua Pacio again but my goal is to fight whoever is on top. Anyone who is in a position to have a world title shot or champion I wish I had a chance to fight him," said Catalan.
Catalan's wish-list of opponents in ONE Championship
Rene Catalan is slated to fight Alex Silva in ONE: NextGen III but he is also looking forward to competing against the best strawweights. Among the fighters he wants to fight next are all placed above Silva in the ONE Championship strawweight rankings, including Hiroba Minowa and Bokang Masunyane.
'D' Challenger' has always been reluctant to fight a Filipino fighter. There is another Filipino fighter fast rising in the strawweight ranks in Lito Adiwang. If ONE Championship wants him to fight the Team Lakay fighter, Catalan is willing to accept the challenge.
"I have no problems facing him [Adiwang]. As long as there is good preparation, I can face anyone," Catalan said.
Catalan will head into his match against Alex Silva carrying a 6-4 professional record. His wins are divided into three decisions, two knockouts and one submission. He is now experiencing back-to-back losses with defeats against Joshua Pacio and Bokang Masunyane.
