Second-ranked contender Jarred Brooks promised to take care of business and finish no. 1-ranked Bokang Masunyane in their strawweight World Title eliminator bout at ONE 156: Eersel vs. Sadikovic—and “The Monkey God” kept his word.
Not even the South African’s tremendous wrestling background could stop the rampaging Brooks, as the latter needed a single round to beat Masunyane, putting “Little Giant” to sleep with a rear-naked choke at the 4:39 mark of the first round.
The win catapulted the Mash Fight Team star to a World Title showdown with longtime divisional king Joshua Pacio, who Brooks has wanted to face since joining ONE.
“I got a bone to pick. I got to go against Joshua Pacio now, so please be ready Joshua. If you can see, in all facets, I’m ready man,” Brooks told Mitch Chilson in the post-fight interview.
“Joshua Pacio, I’m coming for you man. I know I’ve said it twice now, but three times is a charm. I swear I’m taking that belt to the United States—I promise you.”
Brooks has been shooting hard on Team Lakay ever since signing with The Home of Martial Arts early last year, and he quickly proved that he can walk the walk as well as he can talk the talk.
Brooks submitted Pacio’s teammate Lito Adiwang in his debut before beating up Hiroba Minowa in his next assignment, leading to this clash of contenders with Masunyane.
Surprisingly, his bout with Masunyane turned out to be his quickest, shutting down the Coach Quan University star’s world-class wrestling by controlling his back and eventually securing the choke.
For Pacio’s part, he kept his response short and simple, not wanting to be dragged into a war of words with the fiery Brooks.
“Congratulations to [Jarred Brooks] for winning the spot. Awesome performance. I’ll see you soon,” he said.
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