Joshua Pacio to defend strawweight gold against Jarred Brooks in December

Reigning ONE strawweight world champion ‘The Passion’ Joshua Pacio and No.1-ranked strawweight contender Jarred ‘The Monkey God’ Brooks will finally meet in the circle after months of buildup and hype surrounding their intense rivalry.

International Business Times broke the news early Friday morning after confirming with ONE Championship that the world title showdown is now tentatively scheduled for December this year. No other details have been confirmed, but the ONE Championship website currently has December 3 penciled in for ONE on Prime Video 5 and ONE 164.

When Brooks joined ONE Championship in October 2021, the brash American called out every competitor in the promotion’s 125-pound weight class, including Joshua Pacio. ‘The Monkey God’ then went on a rampage through the ranks in ONE Championship, carving a path of destruction that saw him obliterate the promotion’s strawweight elite.

Brooks first took care of business against Pacio’s Team Lakay teammate Lito Adiwang at ONE: NextGen III in October 2021. That following January, Brooks destroyed Hiroba Minowa at ONE: Only the Brave to book a spot opposite the division’s top contender.

Finally, the American mauler forced South Africa’s Bokang ‘Little Giant’ Masunyane to surrender to a rear naked choke in the first round at ONE 156 this April.

Meanwhile, Joshua Pacio last competed in September 2021 at ONE: Revolution, a month before Brooks made his ONE Championship debut. ‘The Passion’ put together a successful strawweight world title defense, winning an all-important trilogy bout over Japanese rival and former ONE world titleholder Yosuke Saruta.

With both men firmly in the win column, this showdown between Pacio and Brooks has undoubtedly been brewing.

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Joshua Pacio and Jarred Brooks is an interesting clash of styles

Filipino megastar Pacio is the only remaining Team Lakay fighter with a world title. At one point in the Baguio City-based faction’s history, they had four ONE world titleholders in Geje Eustaquio, Kevin Belingon, Eduard Folayang, and Pacio himself.

Team Lakay’s distinct style is heavily anchored on their wushu sanda roots, which Cordilleran martial artists are known for. Led by Filipino martial arts pioneer Mark ‘The Machine’ Sangiao, the group has risen to great heights in the industry.

Joshua Pacio, however, is viewed as a beacon of Team Lakay’s next generation, one that has added a dimension of wrestling and grappling to their skill set.

Jarred Brooks, meanwhile, is an American collegiate wrestling standout who has added heavy-handed firepower to his MMA game.

Both men have vastly different approaches and strategies entering their fights but also go for the finish whenever the opportunity presents itself. This showdown isn’t expected to last the full distance, and fans will be in for a treat.