Lito Adiwang shuts down calls to fight Joshua Pacio: 'I do not see ourselves fighting'

Lito Adiwang has shut down hopes and speculations that he would one day fight former teammate Joshua Pacio inside the cage.

The two fighters used to be teammates at Team Lakay. With Pacio holding the ONE strawweight world championship and Adiwang being a fast-rising star at one point, fans have often thought about the possibility of seeing the pair trade leather.

Though both fighters have dismissed the possibility of fighting each other in the past, the possibility arose once more after they both left their old stable.

"I think Joshua has already answered that. What was left to us was respect for each other and our brotherhood," Adiwang said in an interview on Sparring Sessions.

"Before, whenever that question was asked we were hesitant but if it had to happen we had to do it just to be professionals in the sport. He was the champion and if there were no other challengers to fight, we had to be professionals."

Pacio was one of the four former world champions who announced their exit from Team Lakay last March together with Eduard Folayang, Kevin Belingon, and Honorio Banario.

Adiwang, meanwhile, also left the team in the same month and has recently joined HIIT Studio in Bali, Indonesia. According to Adiwang, who last fought in March 2022 when he suffered a knee injury, a fight with Pacio is not on his radar.

"Now there is no reason for us to fight. There is a different champion now and the goal is to climb [in weight]. There are many good possible opponents so I really do not see ourselves fighting," Adiwang stressed.

—JMB, GMA Integrated News