Jarred Brooks: “Anybody at 125 against me is not safe”
Brooks on ONE 171: “Wake up and watch the best mixed martial arts money can buy–for free”
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Jarred Brooks fights Joshua Pacio in trilogy bout at ONE 171
Jarred Brooks is looking to regain his place as the most dominant strawweight in ONE Championship.
That opportunity will come tomorrow at ONE 171: Qatar, where Brooks challenges reigning ONE Strawweight MMA World Champion Joshua Pacio in a trilogy bout.
It has been a unique stretch for Brooks (21-4), who is not accustomed to the taste of defeat. Yet that has been the case ever since winning the ONE Strawweight MMA World Championship in December of 2022.
That victory–which was against Pacio–was followed by a loss in a grappling bout against Mikey Musumeci. And it only worsened from there.
Brooks then lost the title in the rematch against Pacio, getting disqualified only 56 seconds into the bout for an illegal spike. Though he defeated Gustavo Balart to win the interim strawweight belt, which was necessary after Pacio tore his ACL, the momentum faded when Brooks was defeated in his flyweight debut by Reece McLaren.
“No matter what, this sport is going to get the most out of you,” said Brooks. “I’m working to get the best out of this sport, too. So I’m shooting for the moon. That’s how I operate, and I think I’m doing it the right way.”
ONE 171: Qatar airs tomorrow at 9am ET, headlined by the strawweight title unification bout. Live on watch.onefc.com and the ONE YouTube channel, the event takes place at the Lusail Sports Arena and will be powered by its MMA bouts–which also include the return of Roberto Soldic, Kade Ruotolo’s third MMA contest, and Bibiano Fernandes’ retirement bout.
Even with the gold, Pacio (22-4) enters this bout with plenty of questions to answer. Can he damage Brooks with strikes of his own? Or control the distance enough to prevent Brooks from dictating the pace with his takedowns? And if Pacio does get taken down, which feels inevitable, will he have a counter attack to get himself back in the fight?
Brooks is confident that he can do whatever is necessary to win this fight and reclaim the title.
“I don’t think anybody in the division is where I’m at, to be honest,” said Brooks. “I’m not being cocky. I’ve studied the division. There’s not too many people I’m necessarily worried about. But I am focused on the task at hand. I need to finish Pacio.
“As long as I’m not gun shy, and I allow all my tools to come out at the same time, then I’m going to be successful.”
If Brooks finishes Pacio at ONE 171, then the next challenge will be to elevate the entire division in ONE–perhaps beginning with undefeated Muhammad Mokaev, who was victorious in all seven of his UFC bouts.
“I heard about Muhammad Mokaev [potentially] coming to ONE–and I was the first person to call him out,” said Brooks. “Anybody at 125 against me is not safe.”
Due to the time difference in Qatar, which is eight hours ahead of New York, this will air early tomorrow in the United States. Brooks thinks that is perfect, promising it will be the perfect complement to your morning coffee.
“Wake up and watch the best mixed martial arts money can buy–for free,” said Brooks. “This whole card is slept on, but it’s stacked–and if you watch it, you’re going to be pleased.”