Team Lakay’s Jeremy Pacatiw will be making his debut with ONE Championship against Rui Chen of China in the bantamweight bout of ONE: Battleground in Singapore on July 30.
The 25-year-old Pacatiw will enter the ONE circle as an underdog, as Chen has already fought seven times under Asia’s biggest media sports industry.
The Chinese fighter, who has nine wins and two losses, has defeated some upcoming fighters in the deep bantamweight division, while Pacatiw has stopped a former world title contender in another mixed martial arts promotion before he signed with ONE this year.
Ahead of his ONE debut, former ONE bantamweight world champion Kevin Belingon has cautioned Pacatiw that there will be challenges ahead.
Belingon’s friendly warning came as the bantamweight division has recently signed some of the best fighters in the world, including John Lineker, who is the first fighter to win via technical knockout against Belingon.
“Jeremy is now stepping on a bigger stage and the biggest challenge for him is on how he is going to deal with his mindset going into this fight, especially that this is his debut. He has the skills to compete with high level fighters, so he just needs to focus on his game plan to win the game,” the 33-year-old Belingon said.
Pacatiw holds a 10-4 record and is presenting himself as one of the few Team Lakay new blood who are aching to prove that the highland-based stable is ready to usher in the next generation of Filipino warriors.
Belingon was a witness on how Pacatiw has evolved, noting, “He is a complete fighter and what I like most is his confidence, his speed, and his power. These are his assets to climb up the rank in ONE Championship. For now, he just needs to focus on his training and game plan for his upcoming fight.”
These are not just hollow words from a senior member of the famed Team Lakay, but rather a word of caution from the former world champion, who treaded this path before when he was just feeling his way into the promotion. – Harley F. Palangchao
July 27, 2024
