WATCH: Joshua Pacio gets two fingers in the nose trying to defend submission

ONE strawweight MMA world champion Joshua Pacio has endured quite a lot in his illustrious journey in ONE Championship. It included dealing with rough tactics employed by his opponents during fights.

Among those came early in his campaign in the "Home of Martial Arts" in a strawweight clash against fellow Filipino fighter Roy Doliguez. 'The Passion' saw himself taking two fingers in the nose as he went for a submission finish.

The setting was ONE: Legends of the World in November 2017 in Manila. Pacio was looking to bounce back after losing in his previous fight. He made things happen early, able to put his opponent in a guillotiune choke in the opening round.

Desperately trying to escape the choke, Doliguez got hold of the face of Pacio and put two fingers in the nose of the then-Team Lakay standout, even poking the latter's eye in the process. The referee stepped in to give Pacio time to gather himself while handing Doliguez a yellow card for his action.

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ONE Championship recently went to the archives to spotlight that particular instance, sharing it on Instagram.

In the end, however, it was Joshua Pacio who had the last laugh. Incensed over what happened, he picked up the ante after, eventually scoring a knockout victory 38 seconds into the second round, with a well-timed spinning backfist.

The win further solidifed Pacio's standing as a force to contend with in the strawweight division. Then less than a year later, he went on to become the new strawweight king by defeating erstwhile world champion Yoshitaka Naito of Japan by decision.

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Joshua Pacio goes for two-division glory in next fight

The Instagram post of ONE Championship was in line with Joshua Pacio's scheduled match later this year, where he will try to become a two-division MMA world champion.

The Lions Nation MMA superstar is to battle reigning flyweight king Yuya Wakamatsu for his belt at ONE 173: Superbon vs. Noiri on Nov. 16 at the Ariake Arena in Tokyo, Japan. He will try to add the gold in the 135-pound division to the strawweight strap already in his possession.

Entering ONE 173, Joshua Pacio has won three straight matches, with his most recent win coming in February, where he unified the strawwweight belts with a second-round TKO win over American rival and former interim champion Jarred Brooks.

Wakamatsu, meanwhile, will be defending the flyweight belt for the first time since becoming world champion in March.

For more information on ONE 173: Superbon vs. Noiri, follow Sportskeeda MMA and ONE Championship.

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Edited by Saiyed Adeem Karim