nustabet gaming ‘Show People I Am A True Champion’ – Jarred Eager To Finish Rival Joshua Pacio In World Title Unification Fight
ONE Championship ONE Championship Jarred “The Monkey God” Brooks is determined to prove he’s the planet’s best strawweight mixed martial artist and put a cap on his rivalry with Joshua “The Passion” Pacio at ONE 171: Qatar this Thursdaynustabet gaming, February 20.
For their third head-to-head battle, the pair will collide in an epic ONE Strawweight MMA World Title unification bout at Lusail Sports Arena.
Brooks and Pacio share plenty of history. They first met back in December 2022 when the American scored an impressive five-round decision victory to capture Pacio’s strawweight MMA crown.
They would rematch in March 2024 at ONE 166: Qatar. That night, Brooks executed an illegal slam in the bout’s opening minute – a mistake that cost him the ONE Strawweight MMA World Title.
Starting the tournament as clear favourites, Paris Olympics bronze-medallists India haven't disappointed so far, beating hosts China 3-0, Japan 5-1, trouncing Malaysia 8-1 before registering a 3-1 victory against Korea in their last match.
These two teams are meeting for the first time in the tournament in pool stage.
In his next fight, “The Monkey God” bounced back to the win column with a sensational first-round submission win over Gustavo “El Gladiador” Balart to claim the interim strawweight MMA crown while Pacio recovered from a knee injury.
Never one to rest on his laurels, Brooks did not wait for the Filipino’s return and instead took a fight at flyweight against top-five contender Reece “Lightning” McLaren, suffering a hard-fought, closely contested decision loss.
Now just days away from his hotly anticipated trilogy fight with Pacio, Brooks told onefc.com that he’s excited to make a statement:
“I think that this is a huge opportunity for me to bounce back and to show people I am a true champion and one of the best mixed martial artists in ONE Championship, if not any promotion in the world.”
Beyond becoming an undisputed ONE World Champion once again and cementing himself as the sport’s top strawweight, the 31-year-old is finding motivation in his family.
With a wife and now a young daughter watching, Brooks is on a mission to secure a better future:
“People are excited to watch this trilogy bout and see who can bury the other person once and for all. I think that Joshua is an amazing person, an amazing mixed martial artist. He’s had his championship run.
“But my wife and my family are way too important for me to not go out there and give it my all and be the best me that I can possibly be. I think that I am capable of doing that on February 20.”
A veteran of 25 professional fights across the world’s most prestigious organizations, “The Monkey God” has never stopped evolving as a mixed martial artist.
While he’s best known for his relentless wrestling attack and dynamic submission game, he’s also showcased tricky and technically sound stand-up skills in recent appearances.
He’s targeting a quick finish in Qatar, but if he can’t stop Pacio early, he aims to display the full breadth of his all-around MMA game:
“My goal is to get the finish very early. I don’t want to sit in there for too long. Everybody’s dangerous that I fight now, so I want to get him out of there quick and clean.
“But if not, I do want to show my diversity in changing styles rapidly, and I think that I can do that at a good pace, as well, to where it can make somebody think. And it can make somebody not believe in themselves and their styles as much as they think they do.”
Although Jarred Brooks and Joshua Pacio have engaged in a heated rivalry over the past few years, “The Monkey God” said there is no more bad blood between them.
Their rivalry is now built on respect rather than animosity:
“I think that Joshua has been training hard coming off of an ACL surgery. He’s doing the things that he’s supposed to do as the champion that he is, and I’m doing the things that I’m supposed to do as the champion that I am. The trash talk, all of that, that’s all in the past. There’s no need for trash talk.”
online casino no deposit bonus 2022After sharing the Circle with Pacio for nearly 26 minutes of tense action, Brooks feels a unique bond with his Filipino adversary. But despite that mutual respect, he still plans to unleash fury on Thursday.
Given the high-stakes nature of their massive World Title unification clash, he said fans can look forward to an all-out war:
“When you go in there, you’re sharing an energy that is sacred. Through that, Josh and I are like brothers. At the same time, when it comes down to livelihood, when it comes down to your career, when it comes down to the things that matter the most, are we willing to kill each other for that? Yeah.
“I think that’s what makes this bout so interesting. We do have a little camaraderie, but at the same time, we’re looking to take each other’s heads off, and I think that that’s a very special thing that a lot of mixed martial arts fans don’t get to see.”
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