"He just looks so good" - Jarred Brooks in awe of Demetrious Johnson's evolution throughout his decorated MMA career
At age 31, top strawweight contender Jarred Brooks is growing more restless by the day to be as influential a figure as current ONE flyweight MMA world champion 'Mighty Mouse' Demetrious Johnson.
Johnson, the former longtime UFC champion is known for defending his flyweight belt 11 consecutive times over a span of six years, before signing with the largest martial arts promotion in the world, ONE Championship, at age 32.
After that, 'Mighty Mouse' cleared up the divsion's rankings just as quickly before claiming the ONE flyweight belt in 2022.
Johnson's fighting evolution from UFC Champion to a ONE World Champion is certainly awe-inspiring, especially for Jarred Brooks, who also once journeyed through the same pathway as 'Mighty Mouse' years prior.
Ahead of his return on August 2, 'The Monkey God' exclusively told Sportskeeda MMA, how much he admires Johnson's work ethic and evolution as a world-wide champion.
"Man, Demetrious Johnson, the way he's changed his style after COVID and all, man, he just looks so good. And I study DJ very, very heavily, and since 2016 to DJ 2022, DJ has changed a lot. And he's looked really, really good."
ONE Fight Night 24: Brooks vs Balart will air live in US Primtime, free of charge for Prime Video subscribers in the United States and Canada.
"I just care about feeding my family" - Jarred Brooks about cancelling out the noise about his disqualifaction rematch against Joshua Pacio
The last couple of months haven't been easy for a highly competitive guy like Jarred Brooks.
Brooks worst nightmare came to life when he inadvertently spiked Joshua Pacio on the head, while initiating a takedown during their world title rematch earlier this year. Not only did the American superstar automaticallly lose his belt, but he also lost a lot of fans that night. He received tons of criticism online, despite delivering apology after apology for the mistake.
At the end of the day, Brooks can either succumb to all the negativity or focus on what's important. Thankfully, he did the latter.
Brooks told ONE:
"I don't care man. I'm a fighter. If I get a no-contest, a disqualification, that's part of the game. I really don't give a sh*t at this point. I just care about feeding my family and getting to the next fight and staying healthy."