"It’s good having a guy like him in the division" - Danial Williams relishes Jarred Brooks' heel persona in ONE's strawweight division

To say that Jarred Brooks is different would be an understatement.

Brooks is an unabashed character and will cut a scorching promo on anyone he pleases. From champions to contenders, to even gyms, Brooks doesn’t care and will talk trash anyone if he gets an opportunity.

ONE Championship’s strawweight division, by all accounts, is a stacked and exciting weight class. It just so happens that Brooks’ unapologetic mouth is the extra spicy kick that it needed to have the fans invest a little bit more.

Just ask strawweight contender Danial Williams.

The Australian striker believes the strawweight division needs that heel to bring the drama to an already explosive weight class. Some fans may be turned off by Brooks’ constant trash talk, but Williams loves every bit of it.

In an interview with Andrew Whitelaw for SCMP MMA, Williams said:

“I think the division needs someone like him, just a bit of a bad mouth, a bit of a bad guy. He’s a respectful guy. I’ve seen him around the hotel a lot. I know that he’s trying to build up fights, which is really cool, so I think he brings excitement to the division... I think it's good having a guy like him in the division.”

Catch the full interview below (Brooks discussion at 11:01):

The moment he arrived in ONE Championship in late 2021, Jarred Brooks went on a scorching tirade against ONE strawweight world champion Joshua Pacio and his gym Team Lakay.

‘The Monkey God’ even went as far as calling out ONE flyweight world champion Adriano Moraes.

Despite his relentless tirades on the microphone, Brooks is also seen as an admirable person after fights. He’s been nothing but respectful of his opponents Lito Adiwang, Hiroba Minowa, and Bokang Masunyane after their encounters inside the circle.

---

Jarred Brooks just loves being the heel

Fighters calling each other out in ONE Championship isn’t uncommon, but Jarred Brooks just has a way of riling up practically anyone he wants.

Brooks says that his trash talk is almost a responsibility for him. He knows that his opponents are all-around good guys but he has to do what he does to elevate not only himself but also his rivals.

During his interview with Whitelaw, Brooks said that being the villain is his role. He added that he even felt bad beating Bokang Masunyane at ONE 156: Eersel vs. Sadikovic in their title eliminator.

Jarred Brooks practically eviscerated Masunyane on the microphone in the lead-up to their match. It was in the days leading up to the event that Brooks saw Masunyane’s character:

“Hats off to Bokang Masunyane, it sucks beating somebody like him. He’s like deep-down literally a good dude. Joshua Pacio probably is too, but you know, I gotta go in and make my dues and get belts in this division. Right now I gotta be the heel, I gotta be the guy that’s the bad guy.”