Preview: One Championship ‘Reign of Kings’

Prelims

Strawweights
Joshua Pacio (11-2) vs. Pongsiri Mitsatit (9-0)

The final bout of the preliminary card will feature two fighters eager to inject themselves into the strawweight title picture. Pacio from the Philippines and Mitsatit from Thailand were booked initially to compete against one another in January until a bout of food poisoning forced Mitsatit to withdraw.

Mitsatit is coming into this fight on a wave of impressive results and high expectations. Hailing from the northeast of Thailand, Mitsatit, an experienced muay Thai fighter with an impressive record of 72-17, has earned a reputation as a finisher. His last six victories have all come via stoppage, with five of those occurring in the first round. Training at Tiger Muay Thai, the 22-year-old turned professional in 2014 and first competed under the One Championship umbrella in 2016. This will be Mitsatit’s fourth fight for the promotion and in Pacio he has been given the toughest test of his career to date.

At only 22 years of age and with his competitive prime likely still ahead of him, Pacio is already a One Championship veteran. As is to be expected from any fighter coming out of Team Lakay, Pacio comes to the cage equipped with a range of striking options at his disposal. His spinning back fist knockout of Roy Doliguez is a perfect example of his stand-up abilities.

However, Pacio is also in possession of a strong ground game and the majority of his wins have come via submission. His only losses, one of which was an unsuccessful title challenge against Yoshitaka Naito, have been against fighters known for their grappling. If Mitsatit can overcome Pacio on the Filipino’s home turf, it will mark his ascension into the top ranks of One Championship’s strawweight division. However, it will be a tough ask for the Thai up-and-comer and in order to have any real chance of success he will most likely need to keep the fight standing.

Super Series Muay Thai
Catchweight (149 lbs.)
Chamuaktong Fightermuaythai (144-34-1) vs. Brown Pinas (25-8-1)

The first of the night’s Super Series clashes will see Thailand’s Chamuaktong Fightermuaythai take on the Netherlands' Brown Pinas. Chamuaktong, training at Bangkok’s P.K. Saenchai Muay Thai Gym is a Lumpinee and Rajadamnern Stadium Muay Thai World Champion. The 29-year-old is known for his powerful knees and clinches. In Pinas he will face a two-time European kickboxing champion. The 25-year-old has been training in Phuket with Phuket Top Team and will have a three-inch height advantage over his opponent. However with the wealth of experience that Chamuaktong has in the sport one would think he would be prepared for whatever Pinas brings to the cage.

Strawweights
Rene Catalan (4-2) vs. Stefer Rahardian (9-0)

Indonesia’s Rahardian arrived in One Championship in mid-2016 and has been on a steady diet of success since. A grappling specialist who is a BJJ brown belt in the Carlson Gracie lineage, Rahardian started training in 2008. He quickly demonstrated a natural aptitude for jiu-jitsu and was soon competing and winning regional BJJ tournaments.

In 2015, he decided the time was right to switch to MMA and began training at Bali MMA -- it was a smart choice by the 31-year-old. Co-owned by brothers Andrew and Anthony Leone, Bali MMA has earned a reputation as one of the region's premier gyms. Under their tutelage, Rahardian has developed a decent stand-up game. This will be his second fight competing in the strawweight division after dropping down from flyweight.

Catalan, a multiple-time Wushu World Champion, did not have as auspicious a start to his One Championship career as Rahardian. After suffering two losses and one no-contest, the 39-year-old, who at 5-foot-1 is one of the shortest fighters in the strawweight division, was struggling to achieve the results he felt he was capable of. However, he persevered and achieved his first win in One Championship with a decision victory over Zhang You Liang in September 2016. Following up his win over You Liang, Catalan has gone on a run with three more straight victories, putting him on the cusp of a title shot. At his age, if there is ever going to be a moment for Catalan to make his case for the title, this is the time.

Featherweights
Sor Sey (4-2) vs. Xie Bin (4-2)

Sey’s last bout back in May was a gritty decision win over Indonesia’s Victorio Senduk. The Cambodian’s determination played a significant part in getting the victory that night. Sey comes from a wrestling background but is mostly known for his extensive record (145-47) in Kun Khmer, a stand-up martial art unique to Cambodia with a particular focus on elbow strikes. At 5-foot-4, the 35-year-old is not one of the taller fighters in the One Championship featherweight division, which does not bode well for his clash against Bin, as the Chinese fighter stands six feet tall and will have a considerable reach advantage. The 20 year-old Bin trains at Tianjin Top Team and is in the midst of a three-fight winning streak. He last fought in May, where he dismantled Singapore’s Shi Hao Huang in a second-round stoppage win. Bin will be moving up from bantamweight for this fight, which may be the unknown factor that plays a role in the fight’s outcome. As it stands, the odds would be on Bin to use his reach advantage to wear down Sey. Sey may struggle to establish his own offensive rhythm, and one suspects that in order to land any telling blows, he will need to be prepared to receive more in return.