Cuban powerhouse Gustavo ‘El Gladiador’ Balart is brimming high on confidence ahead of his clash against Jarred Brooks. Balart currently is the no-3 ranked contender in the strawweight division and is fresh off four consecutive victories. However, it seems that he has caught the attention of Brooks with an old post on Instagram. The 37-year-old mocked the former titleholder by replacing his face with his own along with the belt and even claimed it looks better on him. 

It seems ‘The Monkey God’ isn’t quite impressed by the whole stunt. He shared a message for his next opponent and wrote, “This guy literally had to put his face on my body to make him think he is a champion, August 2nd I’m going to take the head office, and match my face with it again. #onefightnight24”. Let us take a look at how the fans reacted on the whole. 

Fans go wild after Jarred Brooks shares Gustavo Balart’s post on his social media 

Jarred Brooks isn’t quite worried about fighting the 37-year-old Gustavo Balart and his grappling-heavy style. However, the former strawweight MMA World Champion is definitely on a mission. He is desperate to get back the title and is ready to defeat anyone in front of him. However, his latest post has caught the attention of many out there and the fans shared their opinion on the whole. 

One user seemed highly excited about the clash and commented, “it’s time for Headhunting”. Balart is a former Cuban Olympic Wrestler, however his post forced one of the fans to comment, “That guy is a clown” . 31-year-old Jarred Brooks seems to be the favourite for the clash as one user feels Balart has no chance in the fight, “Hahaha he has NO chance against The Monkey God. Omg not even on his best day and Brooks WORST day. Lmao”. One of the users hardly believes that ‘El Gladiador’ is worthy of holding the title and commented, “No way”. 

One of the users tried to find a funny angle in the post and commented, “With a photoshop job like that it might be an attempt at comedy, if not, sad”. Both fighters are waiting patiently to lay their hands on each other at ONE Fight Night 24. However, it seems ‘El Gladiador’ is unfazed by the threats of the former champion. The 37-year-old seems to have a plan for his opponent. 

Gustavo Balart ready to dominate Jarred Brooks at ONE Fight Night 24 

On August 2, live in U.S. primetime in the main event of ONE Fight Night 24, Gustavo Balart will take on Jared Brooks for the ONE Interim Strawweight MMA World Title. Brooks seems to be reinventing himself as a fighter and isn’t quite worried about the grappling-heavy approach of his opponents. ‘El Gladiador’, on the other hand, is planning to use his wrestling to frustrate his opponent. The highly anticipated clash will take place at Bangkok’s iconic Lumpinee Stadium. 

Before his clash, Balart shared his game plan in an interview with ONE, saying, “I am going to defend myself. I am not going to let him take me down. No way. I will counterattack. I don’t think he is going to get frustrated, but if he is trying and trying, he is going to make things easier for me.”  The 37-year-old pointed out that Brooks likes to take the fight to the ground and dominate his opponents. However, ‘El Gladiador’ believes he has a good level of striking which will surprise the 31-year-old on August 2. Balart has clearly mentioned that he is eyeing the title next and even a highly skilled fighter like ‘The Monkey God’ cannot stop him. 

Do you think the Cuban can win the fight at ONE Fight Night 24? Let us know in the comments below.