Jarred Brooks produced a big performance in Manila to defeat local hero Joshua Pacio and win the ONE strawweight world title.
Ever since his arrival in ONE Championship, Brooks made no secret of his desire to take the promotion by storm and capture the ONE strawweight title.
And at the Mall of Asia Arena, in front of a crowd packed with Pacio fans, “The Monkey God” outpaced the Filipino fan-favorite to earn a unanimous decision in the main event of ONE 164.
The action was fast and furious from the opening bell, with Brooks looking to impose himself early on the defending champion. Brooks’ clear aim was to take the Team Lakay striker off his feet, but Pacio did well to keep things standing through the early portion of the bout.
That’s not to say that Brooks was outgunned on his feet. The American enjoyed plenty of success with his strikes and connected cleanly on “The Passion” on numerous occasions, with his overhand right scoring frequently during the bout.
But the real gap in class was evident when Brooks was able to close the distance and take Pacio to the mat. Despite holding some notable submission victories on his record – including his famed “Passion Lock” technique – Pacio had no answer to Brooks’ relentless pressure on the mat as the American held sway in the grappling exchanges.
That dominance nearly brought a finish in the championship rounds, as a nasty-looking face crank from Brooks put Pacio in a seemingly inescapable position only for the bell to save the Filipino.
Brooks’ superiority on the ground, combined with his successes on the feet, meant that both men seemed pretty sure of the result as the final bell sounded, and the Circle announcer Dom Lau’s announcement seemed almost a foregone conclusion, as Brooks soaked in the moment before receiving the huge gold belt that meant he was the new ONE strawweight champion.
ONE 164: Official Results
MAIN CARD
- Jarred Brooks def. Joshua Pacio via unanimous decision – for strawweight title
- Superlek Kiatmoo9 def. Panpayak Jitmuangnon via split decision – Muay Thai bout
- Amir Aliakbari def. Brandon Vera via TKO (punches) – Round 1, 3:37
- Hu Yong def. Geje Eustaquio via knockout (punch) – Round 1, 4:43
- Jeremy Pacatiw def. Thial Thang via submission (triangle choke) – Round 2, 1:!7
- Drex Zamboanga def. Adonis Sevilleno via unanimous decision
LEAD CARD
- Jhanlo Mark Sangiao def. Anacleto Lauron via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 1, 1:48
- Tagir Khalilov def. Chorfah Tor.Sangtiennoi via TKO (punches) – Round 1, 2:29 - Muay Thai bout
- Lara Fernandez def. Dangkongfah Banchamek via split decision – Muay Thai bout
- Meng Bo def. Jenelyn Olsim via knockout (punch and elbows) – Round 1, 0:24
