“I’m pretty good at it” - British superstar Jonathan Haggerty says he had no problems switching bases from Muay Thai to kickboxing

Jonathan Haggerty isn't one to struggle to switch between disciplines on a whim.

Despite being a natural Muay Thai artist, Haggerty said he has no problems flipping the switch and operating at the highest level of kickboxing.

As confident as he is, Haggerty will once again prove his genius when he defends the ONE bantamweight kickboxing world title against Wei Rui at ONE 171: Qatar on Feb. 20 at Lusail Sports Arena.

In an interview with Inside Fighting, Haggerty said he easily switched his fighting style and actively turned off his tendencies to shoot his elbows when he challenged for the then-vacant ONE bantamweight kickboxing world title.

Jonathan Haggerty said:

"I’m pretty good at that to be fair, you know. I was a bit worried for the first kickboxing fight just in case something did happen, like I was catching the kicks or I was gonna throw a quick elbow."

The British superstar fought exclusively at Muay Thai in his ONE Championship tenure but briefly switched to kickboxing in search of two-sport supremacy.

Haggerty was then the ONE bantamweight Muay Thai world champion when he beat Fabricio Andrade, the bantamweight MMA king, for the vacant ONE bantamweight kickboxing world title at ONE Fight Night 16 in November 2023.

His reign with the bantamweight Muay Thai crown, however, ended in September 2024 when he lost the gold to Superlek Kiatmoo9, the ONE flyweight kickboxing world champion, at ONE 168: Denver.

Despite his recent defeat, Haggerty is determined to showcase his pedigree and prove to Wei that he's still one of the most fearsome world champions in ONE Championship.

Tickets for ONE 171 are available at Q-Tickets and the entire card will be streamed at watch.onefc.com.

Watch Haggerty's entire interview below:

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Jonathan Haggerty says reclaiming Muay Thai throne remains his priority over MMA transition

Jonathan Haggerty would've headed to a third discipline if it wasn't for his defeat to Superlek.

'The General' was already mulling a move to MMA to become the first simultaneous three-sport world champion in ONE Championship, but losing the ONE bantamweight Muay Thai world title to Superlek stopped those plans.

In an interview with ONE Championship, Haggerty said:

"I was at the point earlier last year where I was ready to [try MMA]. But now, losing the Muay Thai belt, that’s my bread and butter, and that setback didn’t help. So the timing is off again. My main priority is to get the Muay Thai belt back.”