Gustavo Balart believes his path to the top was tougher than most: “I took the road less traveled”

Gustavo Balart may have taken the long way around, but he still ended up finding exactly what he was looking for — a shot at becoming a ONE world champion.

With four straight wins, the 37-year-old Cuban sensation will finally go for gold when he steps inside the legendary Lumpinee Stadium on Friday, August 2, for an interim ONE strawweight MMA world title fight.

Standing across from him will be one of the promotion's most feared wrestlers — former divisional king Jarred Brooks.

During an appearance on SerEbro EnlosDeportes ahead of his highly anticipated title tilt, Gustavo Balart suggested that his path to gold was much more turbulent than that of others, but is nonetheless proud to have proven himself time and time again on martial arts' biggest global stage.

Before he takes to the global stage against 'The Monkey God,' he said:

"I think I took the road less traveled, a longer road. But I proved myself because I’ve fought many times, different fighters, and this one is going to be one of the toughest challenges."

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After starting 0-3 in ONE, Gustavo Balart now finds himself with the opportunity of a lifetime

Gustavo Balart's journey up and down journey in ONE Championship has been a truly inspiring one.

Making his promotional debut in April 2019 at ONE: Roots of Honor, 'El Gladiador' came up short against Tatsumitsu Wada via unanimous decision. He would suffer a similar fate in his sophomore appearance against Chan Rothana before being KO'd by Robin Catalan in his third outing at ONE: Masters of Fate.

Desperate for a win, Balart got exactly that at ONE: Battle Ground in 2021, scoring a UD over Ryuto Sawada. That moment was all the American Top Team standout needed to change his fortune.

Since then, he has landed three more victories, besting Yosuke Saruta, Alex Silva, and most recently, fourth-ranked strawweight MMA contender Hiroba Minowa.

Will Balart extend his streak to five straight and take the interim ONE strawweight MMA world title back home?

ONE Championship fans in the United States and Canada can watch ONE Fight Night 24 live and for free via Amazon Prime Video in U.S. primetime on Friday, August 2.