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Gustavo Balart knows he'll have another assignment to pass before he can become the undisputed king of the strawweight division with a win at ONE Fight Night 24.
On Friday night, Balart will be featured in his first main event matchup under the ONE Championship banner.
There are high stakes for the Cuban grappler's upcoming challenge, as he squares up against former world champion Jarred Brooks for the ONE interim strawweight MMA world title.
Balart and Brooks have a massive opportunity to claim ONE gold, but they are both focused on a potential matchup against the division's king, Joshua Pacio.
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During an interview with ONE, 'El Gladiator' referenced Pacio being "the true champion" in the strawweight MMA division by saying:
"I know that the real fight to watch to find out who the true champion is, will be with me. It is a fight that should have taken place a long time ago."
ONE Fight Night 24 represents the promotion's latest event inside the iconic Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand.
The Aug. 2 event featuring Jarred Brooks vs. Gustavo Balart can be seen live and for free by North American and Canadian viewers with an active Amazon Prime Video subscription.
Gustavo Balart would complete the ultimate comeback story with Jarred Brooks win
Gustavo Balart may be riding a four-fight winning streak, but his ONE Championship tenure didn't start with success.
In 2019, Balart fought three times after signing with the promotion, suffering consecutive defeats against Tatsumitsu Wada, Chan Rothana, and Robin Catalan.
Since then, Balart has climbed the ONE strawweight MMA division and secured the number-three ranking. 'El Gladiator' now looks to complete his comeback story by leaving ONE Fight Night 24 with a ONE Championship world title.
It'll be easier said than done for Balart. Earlier this year, Jarred Brooks was dethroned from his ONE strawweight MMA strap due to a disqualification against Joshua Pacio.
Brooks has since vowed to take out anyone in his path to regaining his throne, starting with Balart at Friday's event.
