“He reminds me a bit of myself” - Jonathan Haggerty admits "it must be scary" to face fighter with similar skill set

Jonathan Haggerty will make his long-awaited return to the circle at ONE on Prime Video 4. The former flyweight champion will be moving up a weight class to make his bantamweight debut on November 18.

Whilst Haggerty has already spoken about potential matchups down the line, he has to win this fight in order to make an impact on the division. Standing in his way ready to ruin Haggerty’s arrival is Russia’s Vladimir Kuzmin, who has looked very impressive since signing with ONE Championship.

In an interview with SCMP MMA just days out from the fight, ‘The General’ gave his assessment of his upcoming opponent:

“I think he’s quite technical. He reminds me a bit of myself, you know? ... It must be scary [to face someone like me]. But I’ve got confidence. My team’s got confidence in me. I’m ready.”

Watch the full interview below:

Vladimir Kuzmin has gone 1-1 inside the circle, though some fans believed he should’ve been awarded the split decision win in his last fight against Muangthai PK Saenchai.

In the same interview, Haggerty admitted that though it is a tough fight for his bantamweight debut, he has to be able to beat Kuzmin if he is going to reach the top of the division like he did at flyweight.

Haggerty’s return against Kuzmin is live from the Singapore Indoor Stadium on November 18 and is free to watch with a Prime Video subscription.

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“I’m smiling” - Jonathan Haggerty loving his move to bantamweight, says he’s much "stronger and fitter"

Jonathan Haggerty has got the wind back in his sails ahead of his return to competition at ONE on Prime Video 4: Abbasov vs. Lee.

‘The General’ has switched lanes in his own career, moving up to the bantamweight division and is poised to shake up the rest of the contenders when he takes on Russia’s Vladimir Kuzmin.

The former flyweight Muay Thai world champion made a name for himself in his previous weight class, going 4-2 with his only losses coming to current world champion Rodtang Jitmuangnon.

Whilst this opens up a whole wave of fresh challenges and potential opponents for Haggerty to lick his lips at, it also gives him more freedom in his training camps as he changes his approach to preparation.

Whilst he can be more flexible with his eating habits thanks to the higher weight limit, Jonathan Haggerty has also been able to increase his strength and power. In the same interview, 'The General' told Tom Taylor of the South China Morning Post:

“You know, normally, training-wise now, it gets hard. I get fatigued because I was weight cutting. But now that I've moved up in weight, I’m enjoying it. I’m smiling. I’m eating. And most of all, I’m stronger and I’m fitter.”

With just a few days to go before his long-anticipated return is here, Jonathan Haggerty looks back to his old self.