Jeremy Pacatiw closed yet another challenging year for Team Lakay with an impressive technical knockout against his Brazilian opponent in Brave Combat Federation 33 in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia on Dec. 27.
The 24-year-old Pacatiw went toe-to-toe against Brazilian knockout artist Felipe Efrain but the Igorot fighter landed a solid right cross that floored his opponent in the very first round of their three-round bout.
Pacatiw went quickly for a ground and pound, forcing the referee to stop the fight and saving Efrain from further damage.
Pacatiw’s TKO of Efrain shocked Brave CF fans around the world, as they thought the bantamweight bout could go the distance.
But Pacatiw proved them wrong, as he was not hesitant to trade blows with the former Brave bantamweight world contender.
It is the sixth win in Brave Promotion for the Kapangan, Benguet native, who continues to make history as the only Filipino mixed martial arts fighter having the most number of appearances in the Bahrain-based MMA promotion with 10 bouts.
Before the bout, Efrain was very confident of defeating the Filipino fighter, even vowing to challenge reigning Brave bantamweight world champion Stephen Loman next.
Last year, Efrain challenged Loman for the Brave belt but he was stopped by the Team Lakay champion via technical knockout.
Pacatiw improved his MMA record to seven wins and four losses while Efrain dropped to 13 wins, six losses, and one no contest.
Meanwhile, another Team Lakay fighter, Harold Banario, was defeated by Gamzat Magomedov of Russia in another bantamweight bout.
Banario said he suffered an injury two weeks ago and thought he could recover before fight night, which did not happen.
Banario dropped to five wins and two losses. – Harley F. Palangchao
May 7, 2024
