“You got to beat that dude at his own game” - Jarred Brooks on potential Demetrious Johnson showdown
Newly-crowned ONE strawweight world champion Jarred Brooks marvelously captured the world title from the dominant former strawweight king Joshua Pacio at ONE 164. The bout, which served as the main event last weekend, was held in front of Pacio's home crowd in Manila, Philippines.
'The Monkey God' showed a more complete and holistic game as he surprisingly held his own against Pacio in the striking department while using his wrestling to take the fight to the ground.
Jarred Brooks' stick-and-move strategy, where he used excellent footwork and darting combinations, nullified Pacio's legendary explosive ability to pull the trigger. When the final bell sounded, it was a clear unanimous decision win for the American.
Another fighter who has made a career of using magnificent footwork and effective in-and-out movement is the man who rules the weight class above Jarred Brooks - ONE flyweight world champion Demetrious 'Mighty Mouse' Johnson.
DJ is considered one of the greatest MMA fighters of all time and has had a career that has inspired other fighters, including Jarred Brooks. The American wrestling specialist even admitted that Johnson was his "childhood idol".
Now that both are title holders in the same organization and are only separated by 10 pounds, there's a possibility that Jarred Brooks and Demetrious Johnson will meet inside the Circle.
In his post-fight media scrum, Brooks shed light on the possibility of fighting his idol one day:
"You got to beat that dude at his own game, at the end of the day. And Demetrious [Johnson] is very fast and very agile, and he’s super strong too. I think I have a little bit more power on the feet, though. I can show him things that he’s never been involved with in the sport."
Though his final statement could be up for debate, a fight between Jarred Brooks and the MMA GOAT will surely be a treat as both have similar styles and physical attributes.
Jarred Brooks calls out Demetrious Johnson after world title win at ONE 164
Looks like we don't have to wait very long to see this dream fight happen. In his post-fight interview inside the Circle, Brooks respectfully called out Demetrious Johnson for a potential champion vs. champion match:
"I mean, I would love to fight demetrious Johnson. That's like, a dream come true to me.So Demetrious, I have the utmost respect for you. You're the best ever. I would love to share the Circle with you."
Johnson is still yet to respond to this call-out and is currently scheduled to face Adriano Moraes in a rubber match for the world title at ONE on Prime Video 10. Perhaps if DJ defends his belt against Moraes and 'The Monkey God' scores a win in his first world title defense, then their pairing could be a step closer to being a reality.