Jarred Brooks reveals he used to have a Filipino grandmother: “So I’m not going to be afraid of no Filipinos”

At ONE 164, Jarred Brooks will step into Manila as the villain. The American will face the biggest fight of his career to date when he challenges Joshua Pacio for the strawweight world championship.

In the buildup to their fight, Brooks has constantly trash-talked his opponent and shown him no respect. With the champion defending on home soil, Brooks is well aware that he won’t get the same kind of greeting as his opponent in the Philippines.

In an interview with The MMA Superfan, Jarred Brooks spoke about the fact that this doesn’t faze him, partially because of his upbringing and his grandmother being Filipino:

“Actually, she’s not my grandmother right now. It was my grandmother-in-law when my mom married this guy named Rob. He was Filipino. I still consider her my grandmother. I grew up with a Filipino grandmother and she barely spoke English. So I’m not going to be afraid of no Filipinos when my grandma was chasing me around with a spoon.”

Watch the full interview below:

Brooks knows that his personality isn’t for everyone, but it comes from a place of supreme confidence in his own abilities.

For ‘The Monkey God’, dominating his opponents doesn’t start when he steps inside the cage, it starts when he makes them his number one target.

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“I want to find that middle ground” - Jarred Brooks wants to bridge gap between rap and MMA

Jarred Brooks may be obsessed with being victorious in competition but he still saves some time for hip hop. Growing up as a fan, Brooks studied the game and uses it to express himself alongside martial arts.

Whilst Brooks isn’t one to shy away from taking the mic, for now, at least, it’s just a hobby for ‘The Monkey God’.

In the same interview, Jarred Brooks spoke about the artist that had the most influence on him and how he views rapping alongside his career:

“I gotta give it to Eminem. Eminem made every white boy want to rap. I just like to rhyme and flow. It's just a hobby outside of fighting that makes me happy. Mixed martial arts and rap. If rappers want to be mixed martial artists, then mixed martial artists want to be rappers. I want to find that middle ground.”

The No.1-ranked strawweight contender even delivered his own diss track on Hiroba Minowa ahead of their ONE: Only the Brave bout in January.

At ONE 164 in Manila on December 3, the time for talking is over, whether it’s on beat or not. Brooks will let his performance do the talking when he challenges Joshua Pacio for the strawweight world championship.