Jarred Brooks Earns Shot at Redemption With Win at One Fight Night 24

Jarred Brooks still feels like he was screwed with how he lost his ONE Championship strawweight title. Gustavo Balart was the poor soul to feel the wrath of his pain for the decision. During ONE Fight Night 24, Brooks dominated Balart for the interim strawweight championship to set up a rematch with Joshua Pacio.

Brooks lost the championship to Pacio due to an illegal slam in March. MMAfighting latest news shows that Brooks had picked up Pacio alongside the cage and slammed him to the ground. Pacio’s head made contact with the canvas simultaneously with his arms.

It was ruled an illegal slam; Pacio couldn’t continue, and Brooks lost his championship. When Brooks fought Balart, he made sure to be more gentle in how he got Balart to the canvas. He didn’t need a slam, but Brooks was able to guide Balart to the ground with a traditional wrestling takedown.

Once Balart was down to the ground, things didn’t last long. He could work to Balart’s back and wrap up a rear-naked choke. Balart tapped out with 21 seconds remaining in the first round. But Brooks didn’t just focus his post-fight interview on Pacio.

He also let Demetrious Johnson know he was interested in becoming a multi-division champion as well.

“I got two (belts), you got one, so let’s match it up,” Brooks told Pacio before addressing Johnson. “Watch me, I’m coming for you, brother.”

Bastos Steals Championship From Kelly

Mayssa Bastos turned in a dream first performance in the ONE Championship. Not only did Bastos become the first Brazilian to become a submission champion in the organization, but she also earned a $50,000 bonus. Bastos scored a decision victory over Danielle Kelly to bring home the 26-pound belt from ONE.

Bastos decided to play with her strong suits from the start of the bout. She worked from her open guard and attempted several times to take Kelly’s back. However, Kelly was prepared and focused on being aggressive in scrambles. 

Kelly scored the first catch of the match when she went for a deep inside heel hook. Bastos nearly finished a belly-down heel hook with a minute remaining in the fight. The attempt allowed her to record a catch and even the score.

With the win, Bastos improved to 119-12 in her career.

Anane Ready for the Big Time

Nabil Anane proved to be ONE’s investment in him. Online boxing news shows that the 20-year-old had just won a $100,000 contract during his last fight. Anane, 20, showcased what he is made of by dominating the No. 3 contender in the bantamweight Muay Thai division, Felipe Lobo.

Anane started the fight out quickly. He won the first two rounds by comfortably outstriking his opponents. Anane utilized sharp combinations combined with leg and body kicks to build a lead. Lobo found no match for his variety.

While Lobo could hang tough in the third round to see the scorecards, he had virtually no chance of getting his hands raised.

Nakrob Fairtex Beats Old Rival

Nakrob Fairtex believed he could perform well against Dedduanglek Wankhongohm MBK during a 139-pound catchweight Muay Thai fight. Part of that confidence came from Nakrob having fought Dedduanglek once before. While Nakrob didn’t win quite as emphatically as during their first meeting, it was another strong performance.

Dedduanglek, the No. 4 ranked flyweight Muay Thai fighter, had a hard time dealing with Nakrob’s low kicks and combinations. Dedduanglek started to find his rhythm by the second round, but it would not be enough.

Nakrob added distance between the pair during the third round when he scored a knockdown. That was enough to help Nakrob earn the decision victory. Nakob has now won five straight fights and should be challenging for the rankings.

Cobra Smothers Overwhelmed Opponent

Shamil “The Cobra” Gasanov loves to grapple. He appeared to have plenty of fun while making Aaron Canarte’s life miserable. Gasanov is ranked No. 5 in ONE’s featherweight MMA division and would like to keep climbing toward the top.

Gasanov scored several takedowns throughout the fight. When Gasanov was on the ground, he wasn’t content to just lay on Canarte. Gasanov was able to hunt submissions, but couldn’t find Canarte in a compromising position.

Gasanov did enough to impress the judges and earn a win via decision. He is now 15-1 in his career.

Kovtun Pulls Off Third-Round Magic

Dmitrii Kovtun didn’t let Ferrari Fairtex off the hook at any time during their 145.5-pound catchweight Muay Thai fight. It was an impressive performance for a fighter making his debut in ONE Championship. Kovtun also put together a solid game plan to follow.

Kovtun worked on keeping Ferrari off balance with a jab and wanted to make sure his footwork was perfect so as not to run into any of Ferrari’s power. After two rounds, things appeared to be close on the scorecards. Kovtun stayed cool.

In the third round, Kovtun landed a counter left hook that dropped Ferrari and put him in a position to steal the decision. The judges agreed it was enough, and Ferrari’s winning streak ended.

Madmoudi Grabs Important Victory

Elias Mahmoudi is happy he could pull off an upset win over someone higher than him in the rankings. Mahmoudi, ranked No. 5 in the flyweight kickboxing division, didn’t allow No. 3 Taiki Naito to become comfortable in the ring.

When Taiki got desperate, Mahmoudi was happy to take advantage. In the third round, Taiki attempted a wild punch that Mahmoudi could sidestep. When Mahmoudi countered, he landed a spinning back first that put Taiki down for good.

Here’s a look at the rest of the fights on the card not mentioned above:

• MMA (strawweight), Keito Yamakita win by split decision over Yosuke Saruta
• Muay Thai (catchweight), Rambolek Chor Ajalaboon win by decision over Craig Coakley
• MMA (bantamweight), Enkh-Orgil Baatarkhuu win by submission (arm-triangle choke) over Carlo Bumina-ang, Round 3 4:59
• Muay Thai (catchweight), Aliff Sor Dechapan win by knockout over Zakaria El Jamari, Round 1 1:37
• Muay Thai (atomweight), Amy Pirnie win by knockout over Yu Yau Pui, Round 1 :49

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By Dean McHugh.