“I sort of picked him apart” - Jonathan Haggerty says he was beating Rodtang in first fight before ‘Iron Man’ turned up

Jonathan Haggerty reflected on his first fight against Rodtang.

Before moving to bantamweight, Haggerty held the ONE flyweight Muay Thai world title. Unfortunately for 'The General,' he failed to defend his throne due to consecutive losses against Rodtang, starting with the first in August 2019.

Haggerty and 'The Iron Man' met inside the Mall of Asia Arena for the ONE: Dawn of Heroes co-main event. The action-packed flyweights battled for five rounds, with Rodtang winning by unanimous decision to become the new champion.

During a recent YouTube documentary, Haggerty reflected on his first defeat against 'The Iron Man' by saying:

"This was a tough fight. So we had a five-round battle. I remember, so the first two rounds, I sort of picked him apart, and I remember going back to the corner, going to my trainer, what's the fuss all about there? What is the fuss all about? And then he started upping the pace, upping the pace with me. And it just turned out to be a great fight."

Five months later, Jonathan Haggerty had an opportunity to regain the ONE flyweight Muay Thai world title against Rodtang. The UK superstar came up short again, as 'The Iron Man' won by third-round knockout at ONE: A New Tomorrow.

Watch Haggerty's entire YouTube documentary below:

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Path to Rodtang vs Jonathan Haggerty trilogy

Jonathan Haggerty has found tremendous success since moving from flyweight to bantamweight. The UK superstar has showcased his evolvement at the higher weight class, but Rodtang could see an opportunity to extend his legacy by potentially defeating Haggerty for a third time.

Firstly, Haggerty must overcome arguably the toughest challenge of his fighting career against Superlek, which goes down in the ONE 168: Denver main event on September 6. Meanwhile, Rodtang is scheduled to defend his flyweight Muay Thai throne in a rematch against Jacob Smith at ONE 169: Atlanta on November 8.

Assuming they both win, 'The Iron Man' could pursue a chance to become a two-division world champion. Both fighters could also defend their thrones again before a potential trilogy bout in 2025.