"This is who I wanna be" - Jarred Brooks reflects on how Demetrious Johnson inspired him to get going in MMA

Jarred Brooks has a long list of individuals he looks up to. But when it comes to MMA, one name is way up at the top: multi-time world champion Demetrious Johnson.

For as long as he can remember, the ONE interim strawweight MMA world champion was inspired by the AMC Pankration and Evolve MMA athlete's career trajectory since he started making waves in WEC.

Jarred Brooks, then in his early teens, vividly recalled how Johnson continued being heads and shoulders above fellow flyweights after his departure to the UFC, where he claimed the promotion's inaugural flyweight strap.

'The Monkey God' touched on how the now-retired martial arts icon — often regarded as an MMA GOAT by his peers — had played an influential role in his decision to pick up the sport during an exchange with BODYSLAM. NET Pro Wrestling.

Jarred Brooks shared:

"When 2021 comes around, the UFC flyweight division, and it's my senior year in high school, and I'm like, 'Demetrious Johnson is gonna fight for a 125-pound title? There's gonna be a 125-pound division?' And at the back of my head, I was like, 'This is what I wanna do. This is who I wanna be.' And that's when I started to really focus on my mixed martial arts and jiu-jitsu and wrestling to get better."

Watch the clip here:

'Mighty Mouse' attained the strap via a split decision win over Joseph Benavidez in September 2012. The Washington native successfully defended the title 11 times until 2017 before losing it to Henry Cejudo in August 2018.

Two months later, Johnson joined the ONE Championship roster and racked up a 5-1 promotional slate on his way to the ONE Flyweight MMA World Grand Prix Championship and the ONE Flyweight MMA World Title.

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Jarred Brooks says Demetrious Johnson topples Jon Jones with ease

In the same interview, Jarred Brooks explained why even the likes of Jon Jones can't hold a candle to the legacy and the skill set Johnson had built through his 15-year journey in MMA.

The Mash Fight Team representative continued:

"You put Jon Jones and Demetrious Johnson in the same weight class, Demetrious Johnson smokes him. Period. I don't care... I know the length, the weight and all that stuff... But if they were in the same weight class, Demetrious Johnson."

The 38-year-old last fought at ONE Fight Night 10, coming out victorious in his rubber match against Adriano Moraes via unanimous decision after a five-minute scrap. He bid farewell to the sport at ONE 168: Denver inside Ball Arena on September 6.

North American fans eager to relive an epic night of martial arts alongside Johnson's touching retirement note at ONE 168: Denver can do so via replay on Amazon Prime Video.