"Props to Mikey" - Jarred Brooks credits Darth Rigatoni for helping him 'love the art of jiu-jitsu' again
Jarred Brooks thanked ONE flyweight submission grappling world champion Mikey Musumeci for helping him regain his passion for jiu-jitsu.
In August 2023, Brooks temporarily left the ONE strawweight MMA division to challenge Musumeci for his grappling world title. 'The Monkey God' showcased a valiant effort with his aggressive wrestling before the reigning flyweight world champion submitted him by triangle armbar.
Following the disappointing defeat. Brooks voiced his respect for Musumeci and called for a future rematch. During an interview with the South China Morning Post, 'The Monkey God' had this to say about being grateful that 'Darth Rigatoni' helped him appreciate the art of jiu-jitsu:
"I got to thank Mikey because he got me into jiu-jitsu, like, literally got me heavy into jiu-jitsu, because I started to realize I nullify a lot. I just nullify jiu-jitsu. I take people, and I nullified Mikey for a good amount of time too. It was very hard for him to tap me out."
Brooks followed up by saying:
"But at the same time, I need to work my defense and my offense, and in understanding the fine tunings of what I feel like as American jiu-jitsu, not Brazilian jiu-jitsu. GIs, man, my fingers can't take that but props to Mikey. He really made me love the art of jiu-jitsu again."
Watch Jarred Brooks' entire interview with the South China Morning Post below:
Jarred Brooks looks to regain ONE gold at ONE Fight Night 24
On March 1, Jarred Brooks lost his ONE strawweight MMA world title after he was disqualified for illegally spiking Joshua Pacio on his head. Pacio was later training for a trilogy bout against 'The Monkey God' when he tore his ACL, likely postponing his next title defense until early 2025.
As a result, Brooks has been booked for an interim world title matchup in the ONE Fight Night 24 main event on August 2. The American superstar's opponent is number three-ranked strawweight Gustavo Balart, who is coming off four consecutive wins after a 0-3 start to his promotional tenure.
ONE Fight Night 24 goes down inside the legendary Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand. The event can be seen live and for free by North American and Canadian viewers with an active Amazon Prime Video subscription.