ONE Championship’s focus has strayed from mixed martial arts in recent years, but one of its longstanding MMA stars is set to defend his strawweight title this November.
Joshua Pacio (24-5), a three-time ONE strawweight champ, will face off against Keito Yamakita (13-1) at ONE Samurai 5 on November 18, 2026. The event takes place at the EBARA WAVE Arena Ota in Tokyo, Japan.
ONE officials announced the booking on Wednesday.
Pacio, a.k.a. “The Passion,” is 4-1 across his last five fights, with the lone loss being a failed bid to claim flyweight gold opposite Yuya Wakamatsu last November. The Filipino champ returned in July, submitting Mansur Malachiev to defend his strawweight belt. Coincidentally, Pacio’s last four wins have come against just two opponents, as he has defeated both Malachiev and Jarred Brooks on two separate occasions.
19 of Pacio’s victories have come inside the distance.
Keito “Pocket Monk” Yamakita will be fighting at home in Japan come November. A former Pancrase champ, Yamakita has quietly built an impressive resume in ONE Championship, building up a 6-1 record inside the promotion. Picking up submission victories at the first two ONE Samurai shows appears to have punched his ticket to a title shot.
Yamakita holds victories over a pair of ex-ONE Championship title holds in Alex “Little Rock” Silva and Yosuke Saruta.
