Ilonggo mixed martial artist Rene Catalan lost his ONE Championship: Masters of Fate event bout last week at the SM Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City, falling to strawweight world champion Joshua Pacio.
The Santa Barbara native made his presence felt in the opening round with a submission attempt on Pacio but the latter was able to evade the maneuver. Pacio then stuffed a takedown from Catalan in the second round and worked his way into a mount before securing an arm-triangle choke, leaving the Ilonggo fighter with no choice but to tap out.
Meanwhile, in the undercard, Catalan’s younger brother, Robin Catalan, scored an explosive second round knockout victory over Cuban mixed martial arts fighter Gustavo Balart. The winner was on point with his strikes and was able to hold his own against high-level grappling from Balart. In the second round, Catalan uncorked a well-timed high kick that connected and took his opponent out instantly.
In other results, former ONE lightweight world champion Eduard Folayang earned a technical decision victory over Mongolia’s Amarsanaa Tsogookhuu after an unintentional clash of heads brought the bout to an abrupt end. In addition, former ONE flyweight world champion Geje Eustaquio earned a win with a thrilling second round knockout victory over Finland’s Toni Tauru./ASC, WDJ