Sean Climaco battles Johan “Panda Kick” Estupinan at ONE 168: Denver in a three-round flyweight Muay Thai showdown.
After making a solid debut in ONE Championship, Filipino-American striking star Sean “The One” Climaco is all fired up for his promotional return. He battles Johan “Panda Kick” Estupinan at ONE 168: Denver in a three-round flyweight Muay Thai thriller inside Ball Arena on September 7.
Climaco had a dream start in ONE when he knocked out Josue “Tuso” Cruz in the first round, rocking him with a stiff jab before finishing him with a body shot to announce his arrival in the promotion.
The 30-year-old admitted that everything occurred quickly – from taking the fight to scoring the knockout victory – that he never had a chance to enjoy the process.
Nonetheless, he’s happy to prove that he belongs in ONE.
“Everything happened so fast in that moment. I didn’t really have time to soak it all in. Everything happened so fast, let alone the fight,” he said.
“It showed that this is where I belong. I belong to be fighting against the world’s best. I’ve been training for the last 16 years now and it’s all paid off. This is where I want to be.”
Climaco showed a lot of spunk in his debut for as long as the fight lasted, and he attributes some of that grit to his Filipino roots.
The pride of the Bay Area’s family came from Cebu before immigrating to the United States, and while he was essentially raised in California, he knows his Filipino roots well.
“It would be an honor to represent the Philippines and where I’m from, the bay area in California. I’m ready to represent,” Climaco said.
“Just being a Filipino, a lot of Filipinos got their fighting spirit in them, especially the Cebuanos. My family’s from Cebu.”
Knowing that he’ll represent two different parts of the world in Denver, Climaco plans to elevate his name now that he’s made it to the grandest stage for all martial arts.
“Winning is the only option for me. I know I’m gonna run through this guy. I’m just taking it one fight at a time like I said before. I have a six-fight contract, let’s see what happens in each fight,” he said.
“I’m slowly starting to make my way up, you know, become more of a bigger name, trying to build my following. So, I’m just taking it one fight at a time.”