“It was very hard to get any of his limbs” - Jarred Brooks says Gustavo Balart’s tiny frame was a nuisance to deal with
Jarred Brooks claimed Gustavo Balart is "a tough fight for anybody." Earlier this year, Brooks accidentally spiked Joshua Pacio on his head during their rematch, leading to him getting disqualified and losing his ONE strawweight MMA world title.
Pacio later suffered a knee injury while preparing for a trilogy bout against Brooks, forcing the latter to compete in an interim title fight.
Brooks' opponent for the ONE interim strawweight MMA world title bout was top-ranked Gustavo Balart, who was coming off four consecutive wins. 'The Monkey God' made a massive statement in the August matchup by securing a first-round rear-naked choke against Balart for ONE gold.
During an interview with BODYSLAM.NET Pro Wrestling, Brooks voiced his respect for Balart by saying:
"But yeah, he's a tough fight for anybody. And it's like, 'What do you do?' Especially in jiu-jitsu. It was very hard to get any of his limbs to snap. You got to cover the distance really quick and get him super close."
Before his rematch with Joshua Pacio, Jarred Brooks held an undefeated promotional record of 4-0. The American superstar holds wins against Lito Adiwang, Hiroba Minowa, Bokang Masunyane, and Pacio.
Watch Brooks' entire interview with BODYSLAM.NET Pro Wrestling below:
Will Jarred Brooks fight again before inevitable trilogy with Joshua Pacio?
The biggest fight for Jarred Brooks is a trilogy bout to settle his series with Joshua Pacio. Unfortunately, the ONE strawweight MMA world champion won't return until the first half of 2025, putting Brooks in a situation where he either needs to take another fight or endure a longer-than-expected layoff.
The first option for Brooks would be to defend his ONE interim strawweight MMA strap against another top contender. Another option for Brooks is to pursue the vacant ONE flyweight MMA world title.
Demetrious Johnson recently vacated the throne after officially announcing his retirement. ONE Championship hasn't revealed who will fight to fill the gap, giving 'The Monkey God' a potential chance at two-division supremacy.