Jarred “The Monkey God” Brooks reclaimed ONE gold this past weekend, but he did not shy away from giving praise to his opponent. The Warsaw, Indiana, United States native is riding a one-fight winning streak after losing back-to-back fights.
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At the main event of ONE Fight Night 24 last Friday, the American fighter made quick work of #3-ranked Gustavo “El Gladiador” Balart to win the ONE Interim Strawweight MMA World Title in front of a raucous crowd inside the Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand.
Jarred Brooks secures victory with first-round submission over Gustavo Balart
Both men looked determined to fight their game right from the get-go, with Brooks taking down Balart early on. ‘El Gladiador’ completed a reversal and held top control momentarily.
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However, “The Monkey God” was relentless in taking the back of the Cuban sensation and succeeded in forcing the tap via a rear-naked choke in the opening round of their match. Following the win, an emotional Brooks poured his heart out in an interview with ONE commentator Mitch Chilson in the middle of the ring.
“You have no idea of the amount of pain, the agony, the sacrifice that I had to do to get this belt. Much respect to Gustavo Balart. That dude is an animal. He put me on my back for the first time in my whole career. So hats off to him,” he said.
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Prior to their showdown last weekend, Brooks was adamant that he had every intention of letting his hands fly and claiming a knockout win. However, after their initial exchange, the Mash Fight Team representative decided to showcase his ground game against the former Olympian and clearly won the battle.
Brooks reflects on strategic adjustments and achievements in the ring
He went on to explain why he diverted from his originally planned strategy, recognizing his rival’s abilities and reported preparations. “Theres’ a difference between thinking you’re gonna do something and then when you’re in the ring it’s completely different. He’s small but man, that guy has some power.” Brooks said.
He further added, “He definitely has power. Whenever he goes against anybody, you see it. He’s got great boxing skills. He’s been working with Cuban Olympians his whole camp so I had to adjust, like I said in our interviews – it’s all about adjustments and adaption.”
Apart from the interim strap, “The Monkey God” was also awarded his BJJ black belt by his coach, Alex Hodi right after his win. Now we await where and when he and reigning king Joshua “The Passion” Pacio are going to unify the division’s top prize.
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Yeswanth Praveen