“My focus is still on winning” - Mansur Malachiev excited to test skills against former champ Jarred Brooks

Second-ranked strawweight MMA contender Mansur Malachiev is excited to bring the same dominance in his flyweight debut at ONE Fight Night 36: Prajanchai vs. Di Bella II on Prime Video.

The Russian wrestling machine will face former strawweight MMA world champion Jarred ‘The Monkey God’ Brooks of the United States in less than 24 hours at Bangkok’s Lumpinee Stadium.

Malachiev is itching to settle a grudge with Brooks after the pair’s long-standing rivalry.

A lot of unpleasantness has been thrown between these two elite grapplers online, and the 33-year-old is delighted that they can finally throw down inside the ring.

As such, Malachiev doesn’t mind fighting the former champ in a three-round non-title showdown. After all, it’s also an opportunity to assert his mark in a new weight class.

The Universal Fighters product told ONE Championship:

"Of course, if it were for the belt, I'd be even more motivated, but my focus is still on winning, and that's the most important thing. Brooks held the belt for a long time, and I consider him stronger than the others in the strawweight division."

Meanwhile, Malachiev has built impressive momentum after suffering the lone loss of his career against reigning strawweight MMA kingpin Joshua ‘The Passion’ Pacio.

He’ll look to make it three wins in a row against Brooks at ONE Fight Night 36. The card airs live in U.S. primetime for Prime Video subscribers in North America at no additional fee.

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Mansur Malachiev reveals how rivalry with Jarred Brooks started

Mansur Malachiev claims Jarred Brooks instigated their bad blood after talking trash when he first joined the home of martial arts.

According to the Dagestani powerhouse, 'The Monkey God' opened his mouth unprovoked, which didn't sit well with him.

Malachiev recalled in the same interview:

"Yes, he's a chatterbox, because he told me in my debut fight in ONE that if I win this fight, he'll fight me next since he was the champion at the time. He ended up throwing around disrespectful language, which is why I called him just a big mouth.”