FILE — Joshua Pacio and Yosuke Saruta face off at the ONE: Roots of Honor press conference. Photo by Tristan Tamayo/INQUIRER.net
MANILA, Philippines—The trilogy is set between ONE strawweight champion Joshua Pacio and Yosuke Saruta with the two slated for the co-main event of ONE: Revolution on September 24.
On his first title reign, Pacio lost the strawweight strap to Saruta via split decision in January 2019, an outcome that did not sit well ONE CEO Chatri Sityodtong.
But the Team Lakay stalwart regained his championship after knocking out Saruta in the fourth round of their April 2019 rematch, beginning a two-year reign.
Since that knockout win, Pacio (18-3) has defended his belt against fellow Filipino Rene Catalan and former champion Alex Silva, making him the lone Filipino champion in ONE Championship at the moment.
Saruta (21-9), meanwhile, captured back-to-back wins against Daichi Kitakata and Yoshitaka Naito after his loss to Pacio.
Meanwhile, ONE lightweight champion Christian Lee will defend his title against no.3 contender Ok Rae Yoon in the main event of the stacked card that also includes ONE bantamweight kickboxing champion Capitan Petchyindee Academy staking his championship against Mehdi Zatout as the other co-main event.