The Bay Area’s Sean Climaco might be new to ONE Championship, having just made his promotional debut in May, but he is a longtime veteran of the fight game. The 30-year-old striking specialist has been training and fighting for over a decade and a half.
Before hitting the ONE Circle at ONE Fight Night 22, when he scored a first-round knockout of Josue Cruz, he had finished multiple opponents in row. He has fought for Lion Fight, Warrior’s Cup, and even int he World Games in Colorado. He attributes his successes to a lifetime of training with some of the best coaches California has to offer.
“I think I have a lot of good training partners out here in the Bay Area as well as my coaches, and they help level me up and keep me sharp,” Climaco told Dan Kuhl of Combat Press. “And yeah, I’ve just been elevated through them. I live in Fremont, and my main training gym is in Milpitas. But, I’ll train across the area – San Francisco, Dublin.”
Climaco first got into combat sports when he was 14 years old. Prior to that, he thought about a career in basketball, but didn’t really have the height. So, he tried his hand at just about everything combat sports could offer.
“I started training 16 years ago,” Climaco explained. “I just tried everything. It was more like an MMA gym. It was like AKA, actually – American Kickboxing Academy. So I tried jiu-jitsu, boxing, Muay Thai, kickboxing, even wrestling, and I just was doing it all. For some reason, I just fell in love with striking more. I started competing in smokers and stuff, and, once those started adding up, every time I would try to do the other stuff, I would always want to beat and like punch someone in the face in the ring or in the competition. So I just gravitated towards Muay Thai.
“I did some jiu-jitsu competitions, too. But, it’s just hard to do it all together. I mean, that’s what MMA is for as well. But, eventually, I just gravitated towards Muay Thai.”
Climaco did not stay at AKA for his fighting career. A winding path that led him to college, and then out of college, included landing him under the tutelage of Coach Rudi Ott about 11 years ago. Ott is the head coach at Smash Gyms in Milipitas, and the team is called Smash Fighters. While Smash is Climaco’s main gym, they also cross-train at other gyms, such as CSA Gym in Dublin. Between great coaches and training partners and a love of the game, Climaco feels at home in Muay Thai.
“I enjoy one-on-one sports because you can’t really rely on your team,” Climaco said. “Like, in fighting, you do need a team to help you grow, but when you’re competing, it’s just you in there. So, I like that aspect. I don’t have to rely on anyone. You don’t have to rely on your team. When you’re in there, all you have is yourself. You have your team to help you prepare, which is very important, but when you’re in there, it’s all on you.”
As mentioned, Climaco has been quite successful, starting with a win at Road to ONE and his official ONE debut, he has built a solid foundation on which he looks to blossom in his career. After his win over Cruz, he was chomping at the bit to get back in the ONE Circle.
“Oh man, I just wanted to get back in the ONE cage or ring like right after it,” Climaco elaborated. “It happened – everything happened too fast. I mean, you can’t really plan how long a fight would go so. It’s, you know, you don’t get paid by the rounds, so the earlier the fight, the better. And, I always plan to finish my opponents. Whether it’s the first, second or third, that’s always the game plan. I don’t fight to point-score or try to make it look pretty or fight to a decision.
“Like, the walkout, the time I was in Thailand, and the fight itself, it went by so fast. So, I’m excited to experience that feeling again.”
Well, Climaco is going to get that feeling again on Friday, Sep. 6 in Denver, Colo. when he faces Columbia’s Johan Estupiñan in a Muay Thai battle using four-ounce gloves. Estupiñan has fought twice under ONE, scoring a third-round knockout at ONE Friday Fights 64 and a decision win at ONE 167 three months ago. At only 21 years old, Climaco welcomes the younger challenger.
“I just know he’s like a young, hungry kid who’s gonna come guns blazing,” explained Climaco. “He’s explosive. Yeah, it’s gonna be an exciting fight. Usually, when guys are young and hungry, they’re gonna come after me. They end up falling because they haven’t faced anyone like me yet. Once I’m in the ring with them, and they get hit – like it doesn’t even have to be that hard of a punch – their eyes just get wide open like they’ve never been hit like that before. So, he’s got that coming.”
Climaco comes into the ONE Circle with an American Muay Thai style that is growing like wildfire across the country. It’s not an old-school Thai style, but heavy on the pressure side, similar to Muay Bouk.
“I feel like guys who fight very traditional Thai style are, maybe like, too calm, I guess,” said Climaco. “I mean, I feel like I’m more like a hybrid type of striker. I could throw my punches, I throw different kicks, and I would say my style isn’t very orthodox. It’s very unorthodox. So, it can be even awkward for opponents or even my sparring partners when they fight or spar me. That’s why I ended up developing the nickname ‘The One.’ It’s like that style that no one has ever seen, or they’re not accustomed to. I don’t think there’s any sparring partners out there that he’s training with that can prepare to emulate me.”
Outside of training for his upcoming battle, Climaco’s free time is mostly taken up teaching Muay Thai, running, biking or hiking with his dog. His whole life revolves around his career, and he is especially excited to get back to Denver.
“I fought at the World Games qualifiers [in Colorado] a couple years ago, and I had four fights in one weekend,” said the Californian. “Yeah, I feel [the altitude]. Like, after the first time, I was like, ‘Oh damn. It’s going to be a long weekend.’ But, at least now, it’s just one fight this time. And, you know, with that tournament too, we had headgear, elbow pads and shin guards. And, this is just small gloves with no gear. And, what’s funny, too, is the last time I fought in Denver is when I tore my ACL in that tournament. So like, I’m coming back to Denver for redemption and I’m excited for it.
“After that injury, like, I was down. Like, it really like put me down. Like, I thought I wouldn’t fight again. And then, I thought I was gonna walk away and stop fighting and move on to something else. But, you know, I’m glad I did it, because look where I’m at now.”
As Climaco mentioned, nobody gets paid by the round, so he has no intention of going the distance at ONE 168. He has his eyes set on victory and plans to steal the show with the opening bout of the evening.
“Expect violence and a knockout,” predicted Climaco. “This is going to be fight of the night. First fight of the night is gonna be fight of the night. We’re gonna start off the card with a bang. This guy’s talking, and they’re hyping this guy up, so if I finish him, I think I, for sure, should deserve a bonus.”
ONE 168: Denver airs live and free to subscribers on Amazon Prime Video starting at 8 p.m. ET.