Jonathan Haggerty talks about his MMA debut and expects “fireworks” at ONE 168

The wait is almost over for ONE 168, which takes place this Friday, September 6th at Ball Arena in Denver, Colorado.

The packed schedule will see reigning ONE Championship Bantamweight Muay Thai Champion Jonathan Haggerty attempt to defend his title against Superlek in the main event of the evening, and ahead of the event, “The General” took some time to speak with MMA KO’s Drew Beaupré.

Haggerty will be fighting in the United States for the first time in his career and is excited to show the fans in Denver what he can do. He has taken precautions to be well prepared for the city's notorious altitude when he competes as a walk-on fighter on fight night.

“We were [in Denver] for three to four weeks…When we landed, I went for a run and didn’t really notice anything [elevation] Effects. I thought it was going to be a walk in the park and it was like a myth, kind of. But then the next afternoon we started working the pads and my trainer said to me '50 kicks to the left, 50 kicks to the right', just to warm up like we normally do. And I looked at him and he looked at me and my face went all white. I had no oxygen in my body, I was literally ready to hit the ground. I thought 'Yeah, this is serious.' So I'm very happy we came here three weeks before the fight.”

“I am very excited [to fight in the United States]and I'm very grateful that ONE Championship chose me to main event to showcase the skills of Muay Thai. I'm going to come and put on a great show and I'm sure Superlek will do the same… Since I was a little boy, I used to sit on the sofa with my dad and watch the American shows, the walkouts, and I always wanted to be a part of it. I said to myself, “I'm going to be a part of it.” And here we are now, so [I’m] I will grab this opportunity with both hands and just look forward to delivering a great performance.”

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The main event of ONE 168 is a rematch of Haggerty and Superlek's previous meeting in 2018, which Superlek won via medical stoppage due to a cut at the end of the second round. That clash was Haggerty's last fight before joining ONE Championship in 2019, and “The General” is looking forward to avenging his previous loss on such a big stage.

“We first met in 2018 and I was basically a novice in the sport. The fight didn't go the way I wanted it to. But it is what it is, we're both at our peak now, in the best organization in the world. Maybe that's how it should be, you know? He's dangerous, I'm dangerous. I'm a champion, he's a champion. So that's how it should be. I think the key here now is the 4-ounce gloves and we're in the biggest organization in the world and there's that pressure to deliver a performance. And we're going to go out there and show some amazing Muay Thai skills.”

Superlek's current winning streak includes a victory over Rodtang, who defeated Haggerty in back-to-back fights in 2019 and 2020. Haggerty has been undefeated since then and would be happy to face Rodtang a third time at some point in the future.

“There's mutual respect between me and Rodtang. There's also mutual respect between me and Superlek. But I would always love to fight Rodtang again, it's just one of my dreams to fight him again and get revenge, you know? He beat me twice and I don't like that. I don't like that very much. So if I can get a knockout, that would be revenge for the two losses he suffered against me.”

Haggerty has already taken full advantage of ONE Championship's wide range of combat sports, winning gold in Muay Thai and kickboxing. The 27-year-old already holds two belts in two different sports and has every intention of making the jump to MMA at some point.

“I really want to make my MMA debut. But that's what happens when you're a great striker. I've been crammed with winning the belt. So I'm completely stretched, I can't go for the – well, I can go for the MMA belt, but it's going to be very difficult to hold all three sports… I'm definitely going to have an MMA fight soon. The plan is to defend that Muay Thai belt, defend the kickboxing belt and then hopefully have an MMA debut fight.”

“Ever since I started the sport as a young boy, I always wanted to do MMA. I was always interested in it. My dad had an MMA gym and that's where I started training – in an MMA gym with MMA fighters. I remember as a young boy sparring with all of my dad's training partners, they were MMA. Since then, I've loved MMA as much as Thai boxing. So I could definitely see myself switching to MMA full time.”

The current ONE Championship bantamweight MMA champion is Fabrico Andrade, who fought Haggerty for the promotion's vacant bantamweight kickboxing title last year at ONE Fight Night 16. “The General” already has one win over the Brazilian and would love to meet Andrade again in an MMA fight.

“Every fight starts standing up, so if he can get to me, he might have a chance. If not, it will be the same result as the last fight. But yes, I am definitely interested in this fight. I said if I get the contract, I will sign it without hesitation, Andrade for sure.”

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Having stopped Felipe Lobo at ONE Fight Night 19 in February, Haggerty already has one Muay Thai title defense under his belt. Now he is ready to defend his belt for a second time against Superlek and promises that fans won't want to miss the highly anticipated rematch at ONE 168.

“I'm ready, I hope Superlek is ready… ONE Championship 168, it's going to be absolute fireworks. I'm coming to put on a show, I'm coming to put on fireworks. And you can expect a lot of spinning elbows, elbows, blood. The usual.”

ONE 168 takes place on Friday, September 6th at Ball Arena in Denver, Colorado. The event will be available on Prime Video in the US and Canada, while fans in the UK can catch all the action on Sky Sports.

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