Third-ranked strawweight contender Hiroba Minowa is just one of the many fighters awaiting ONE Championship’s massive year-ender in the Philippines.
After all, he knows that he could meet either of the main event protagonists in the future.
ONE Strawweight World Champion Joshua “The Passion” Pacio defends his strap against dangerous top contender Jarred “The Monkey God” Brooks at ONE 164 on Dec. 3 at the Mall of Asia Arena.
Minowa, who’s looking to scale the division anew, sees this fight as the ultimate clash of styles. He believes Pacio will play the striking game, noting that the Filipino’s gas tank will be his main advantage.
“Pacio is the only one who has experienced five rounds, so considering that, I think his experience of fighting five rounds is his strength,” Minowa said.
The Japanese added that if Pacio can push the fight into the latter rounds, he’ll be in a much better position to beat Brooks.
“There will be a lot of different scenarios, but I think there will be a lot of ground fights at the beginning. Later on, I think it will be more of a stand-up fight. So, I think Brooks will dominate in the early rounds and Pacio will have the advantage in the later rounds,” Minowa said.
Whether the fight goes the distance is a different story altogether, as Minowa sees Pacio struggling with Brooks’ wrestling.
After all, Minowa has experienced going toe-to-toe with Brooks, and he knows first-hand just how good the American’s wrestling is.
One interesting thing he noted about Brooks, though, is that the Michigan native is no pushover in the striking department as well.
Minowa got tagged with some of Brooks’ power shots in their meeting, and he believes that Pacio shouldn’t look past his opponent’s striking, as that could lead to his downfall.
“I think Pacio should assume that Brooks is a much better wrestler than he has ever fought,” Minowa said.
“On top of that, Brooks is not a fighter who can't strike, so I think Pacio will struggle. I think Brooks will win by submission.”
Catch ONE 164: Pacio vs. Brooks on 3 December at the Mall of Asia Arena! Get your tickets at https://smtickets.com/events/view/11439.
In the meantime, catch “Globe Presents ONE Warrior Series Philippines” every Sunday night on GTV, the ONE Super App, and watch.onefc.com. Weekly replays air on Tap Go, ONE Championship Philippines Facebook, and ONE Championship’s official YouTube channel.
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