Jarred Brooks says Demetrious Johnson’s greatness was evident from the start: “A champ no matter what”

ONE interim strawweight MMA world champion Jarred Brooks always knew that Demetrious Johnson was destined for greatness.

After nearly two decades of dominance and multiple world title reigns, 'Mighty Mouse' brought an end to his illustrious mixed martial arts career at ONE 168: Denver. An emotional Johnson revealed that his days of dawning the four-ounce gloves were officially over, though he did leave the door open for a potential return to the Circle for a potential submission grappling match.

Brooks, who had long dreamt of throwing hands with Johnson inside the Circle, recently shared his thoughts on the flyweight great's iconic career and what it was like watching 'DJ' during his early days in the sport.

Speaking to BODYSLAM.NET, Brooks said:

"I've watched Demetrious Johnson since he was in WEC, man. And I was like, 'Who is this guy?' He's super exciting. I thought he was gonna be a future champ no matter what whenever I saw him fight."

Johnson went 25-4 in his career with six of his victories coming under the ONE Championship banner. Along the way, he held both the UFC and ONE flyweight world championships and won the ONE Flyweight MMA World Grand Prix tournament in 2019.

If you missed any of the action, ONE Championship fans in the United States and Canada can watch the ONE 168: Denver replay on demand via Amazon Prime Video.

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Jarred Brooks chomping at the bit for trilogy fight with Joshua Pacio

While 'The Monkey God' may never get a chance to square off with the former ONE flyweight MMA world champion on martial arts' biggest global stage, Jarred Brooks will have the opportunity to trade in his interim title for undisputed gold next year.

After surrendering the ONE strawweight MMA world championship to Joshua Pacio at ONE 166: Qatar earlier this year, Brooks bounced back with an interim title-winning performance against Gustavo Balart at ONE Fight Night 24 in August.

The victory guaranteed Brooks an opportunity to once again run it back with Pacio and close out their trilogy. When and where that takes place remains to be seen as 'The Passion' continues to recover from ALC surgery, but it's safe to say that Brooks' patience is wearing a little thin.

Speaking to Sportskeeda, Brooks said:

"I don't care, bro. Give me my belt back. I want it now. I'm sorry you have ACL surgery, bro. I wish you nothing but the best and hope that you come back even stronger, but man I really miss the smell of that gold and I really need that back for my family."

Are you excited to see Brooks vs. Pacio III once 'The Passion' is healed up and ready to go?