"Nothing ever makes me lose hope" - Jarred Brooks keeping his head up high amid a rough patch
Even when life hits Jarred Brooks hard, his only response is to hit right back.
To say that things have gone awry for the former strawweight MMA world champion would be quite an understatement.
After a dominant 4-0 run in the world's largest martial arts organization, the 31-year-old American tasted defeat when he ventured to submission grappling against Mikey Musumeci last year.
While his bid for two-sport supremacy didn't exactly pan out, Brooks still had all the confidence in the world since he still lorded over the 125-pound MMA ranks. However, all was taken away following a split-second miscalculation.
'The Monkey God' would eventually lose his 26 pounds of gold in the most disheartening fashion after he got disqualified for spiking Joshua Pacio on his neck at ONE 166 this past March.
Jarred Brooks was vilified shortly after, being labeled as a dirty fighter by some angry fans. Despite all the negativity he's been facing, the Mash Fight Team standout knows tough times won't last.
Brooks shared in an interview with Sherdog:
"When you go against the grain of what life is, it breaks you down as a person," he said.
"Nothing ever makes me lose hope. People think I'm some rich white kid, but no, I've had a rough lifestyle."
Jarred Brooks wants to use the pain as motivation to beat Gustavo Balart
An opportunity to reclaim gold has fallen into Jarred Brooks' lap, as an interim strawweight MMA king will be crowned at ONE Fight Night 24.
On August 2, live in US primetime, 'The Monkey God' will tussle with the No. 3-ranked Gustavo Balart at Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand.
In a previous interview with SCMP MMA, Brooks shared his deep realization since losing his most prized possession:
"In your whole life, you get things taken away from you. Understanding that and how God can take away from you and you are still sticking with the pain and understanding and trying to find good direction, and trying to keep a good mindset through all the sh*t that you dig through."
Prime Video subscribers in North America can watch ONE Fight Night 24 free of charge.