ONE Championship: Jarred Brooks Eyes Demetrious Johnson, Feels "Little Guys Fight" Would Be Perfect

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Freshly crowned ONE Strawweight MMA World Champion Jarred Brooks is undoubtedly one of the best fighters in the sport's lighter weight classes, and he is going all-out in his quest to prove it.

"The Monkey God" laid claim to a portion of the divisional gold this past weekend when he submitted #3-ranked divisional contender Gustavo Balart for the ONE Interim Strawweight MMA World Title.

The blockbuster battle of wrestling standouts served as the main event at ONE Fight Night 24 at Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand, on August 3.

Before he locked horns with Balart, Brooks shared a thrilling rivalry with current ONE Strawweight MMA World Champion Joshua Pacio, who is recovering from an unfortunate ACL injury suffered in training.

Brooks defeated the Filipino by unanimous decision in their first meeting before he was unfortunately disqualified for an illegal slam in the rematch. However, there is another potential rival that lives in the back of the American's mind.

Jarred Brooks Calls Out Demetrious Johnson For Defining Battle Of "Little Guys"

Jarred Brooks has made no secret of his desire to share the Circle with ONE Flyweight MMA World Champion Demetrious Johnson before the American legend calls time on his storied career.

"Mighty Mouse" is undeniably one of the greatest MMA fighters of all time, with 12 UFC Championships and two ONE Flyweight MMA World Titles to his credit during a professional career spanning 15 years.

But the 37-year-old hasn't always been given his flowers by the North American fan base, and Brooks told SCMP MMA in a recent interview that he is the man to help endear the lighter weight classes to the masses.

"I think that me and Demetrious Johnson would be the perfect fight for making people really like little guys fighting in the Western hemisphere," he said.

"Your average 6-foot-2 guy thinks that he can beat my a**, no problem right? So, when he watches me fight, he can't take me seriously and I understand that to some point. At the same time, none of these guys have been in the f****** gym, none of these guys.

"That's the thing I love about Asia and the countries I've been to. Their whole structure in the [continent] is martial arts, and they're so respectful."

Johnson hasn't been seen in action since his thrilling trilogy deciding win over Adriano Moraes in May 2023. He reportedly remains undecided on his MMA future, choosing to instead focus his energies on Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu competition in recent times.