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Manila Bulletin devider Sports devider Mansur Malachiev: A look at Joshua Pacio's next terrifyingly great opponent 

Mansur Malachiev: A look at Joshua Pacio's next terrifyingly great opponent 

Published Sep 5, 2023 09:16 am

At A Glance

  • Former two-time ONE Strawweight MMA World Champion Joshua "The Passion" Pacio will have a tough return to the ONE Championship ring after spending months honing his craft in a campaign to retake his throne. 

Former two-time ONE Strawweight MMA World Champion Joshua “The Passion” Pacio will have a tough return to the ONE Championship ring after spending months honing his craft in a campaign to retake his throne. 

Joshua_Pacio-hero-1200x1165-2-600x583.jpg
Joshua “The Passion” Pacio. (One Championship's photo)

Waiting for him in his comeback fight is the dangerous no. 5-ranked strawweight MMA contender Mansur Malachiev. The two meet at ONE Fight Night 15: Tawanchai vs. Superbon on Oct. 7 inside Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand. 

But who exactly is Malachiev, and what are the threats he poses to Pacio? Let’s take a deeper look. 

 

 

Finishing Machine 

 

Filipino fans already got a glimpse of what Malachiev can do when he submitted red-hot Jeremy Miado in his debut earlier this year to keep his record immaculate at 11-0 and continue his finishing ways. 

With the D’arce choke win over Miado, Malachiev has now finished nine of his 11 opponents. And those finishes have come from a bevy of ways – chokes, knockouts, and referee stoppages. 

It’s not that he’s facing poor competition either. His last four opponents, including Miado, have a combined record of a whopping 38 wins and only eight losses. 

 

 

Dagestani Wrestling Machine

 

Malachiev’s main strength is certainly his wrestling, so it shouldn’t be surprising to learn that he hails from the world-famous Dagestan region in Russia, where some of the best MMA wrestlers have emerged from. 

The 30-year-old polished his wrestling skills in the rough mountainous terrains of Dagestan, the same place where the likes of Khabib Nurmagomedov and Saygid Izagakhmaev called home. 

Now he looks to continue Dagestan’s wrestling tradition against the well-rounded Pacio. 

 

 

Well-Travelled Fighter

 

While Malachiev made a name for himself in Russia, he’s worked with some of the best gyms in the world.

Aside from his time at Universal Fighters in Russia, he also trained at Tiger Muay Thai in Phuket, Thailand, where ONE World Champions Anatoly Malykhin and Fabricio Andrade developed their skills. 

Like Pacio, he also spent a considerable amount of time in the United States training with American Top Team in Florida late last year. 

From the looks of it, he will certainly be a tough test for Pacio. But given the Filipino has done the necessary work after losing his belt, “The Passion” is prepared for Malachiev. 

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