Jarred Brooks Plans More Definitive Ending in Rematch with Joshua Pacio at ONE 166

ONE Championship strawweight (125-pound) title holder Jarred Brooks claims he’ll leave no doubt about his GOAT status when he defends his strap against former champ Joshua Pacio at ONE 166: Qatar on March 1.

Brooks (20-2) will return to action for the first time since December 2022, when he dethroned Pacio (20-4) via a hard-earned unanimous decision in a bout that some believe could have gone either way. While Brooks believes he did enough to get his hand raised last time, he plans to quiet the remaining doubters by finishing Pacio in the rematch.

“I think I beat Joshua Pacio pretty [definitively] last time,” Brooks said at a pre-fight press conference. “I’m willing to do that again and again and again until Joshua Pacio’s name is completely out of the picture and I am the best strawweight ever. I am the GOAT of the strawweights.‌

“People are underestimating my hunger and my goals in ONE Championship. Now, I’m here to show Joshua Pacio who is the best. I want to knock him out, and I want to finish him. I’m gonna finish him this time.”

Pacio has since returned to the win column with a decision victory over previously unbeaten Russian contender Mansur Malachiev this past October. The Filipino is glad to have crowd support in Qatar and looks to inspire the next generation of fighters by reclaiming his title.

“Honestly, I feel like I’m in Manila right now. There’s a lot of Filipinos. In every country that I compete in, there are a lot of Filipinos,” Pacio said.

“Being one of the athletes in ONE Championship makes me so proud that I belong to the greatest and largest martial arts organization in the world. Competing here, I believe God put me on this platform to inspire the next generation. If you have dreams, go chase them. To the Filipinos, expect that I will bring home the gold belt this Friday.”