On The Cusp: History Beckons For Jonathan Haggerty at ONE Fight Night 9

As the predecessor to Rodtang Jitmuangnon’s ONE Flyweight Muay Thai World Title reign, Jonathan Haggerty knows what it’s like to hold gold in ONE Championship.

And next week on Saturday, 22nd April, “The General” will have an opportunity to earn his second World Title in the promotion when he challenges ONE Bantamweight Muay Thai World Champion Nong-O Hama in the main event of ONE Fight Night 9 on Prime Video.

Haggerty’s first taste of gold came against Sam-A Gaiyanghadao at ONE: FOR HONOR in May 2019. 

Then only 22 years old, the Londoner utilised his signature teep kicks and hard-hitting combinations over the course of five rounds to become the first man from the UK to win a World Title in the Singapore-based organisation.

While his three-month reign may not have been as long as he’d have liked, Haggerty’s insatiable quest for gold has brought him up a weight class and straight to the top of the bantamweight fold.

But, much like Sam-A before him, Nong-O is a dangerous Muay Thai dynamo who has put down every challenge that’s come his way in the bantamweight division. In fact, he’s barely looked stressed at any point of his now seven-fight reign.

The Thai icon’s last challenge came in the form of Alaverdi Ramazanov at ONE Friday Fights 1 in January. Though the Russian appeared to expose chinks in the World Champion’s armour, Nong-O eventually asserted his dominance and scored a fifth consecutive.

Those holes will have been studied meticulously by Haggerty and his team ahead of his fateful clash next weekend. And they’re hoping they can exploit them in order to leave the Ring as the first fighter to put a dent in Nong-O’s perfect 10-0 run.

Some fans feel Haggerty has bitten off more than he can chew in challenging the incomparable Thai. But the Brit star is carrying a three-fight winning streak of his own into the bout, and he knows well what it takes to earn gold in ONE.

It’s a battle of youth-versus-wisdom in Bangkok, Thailand, and while many inside Bangkok’s iconic Lumpinee Stadium will be backing their native boy, Haggerty is confident that Nong-O will be in for a shock.