Jonathan Haggerty is not a stranger to the bright lights of ONE Championship, but it was surreal for him when he first started as a debutant.
Back then, he only used to dream of fighting on the big arenas, and when he realized he was debuting against Joseph Lasiri, all of those emotions started to get to him.
Haggerty revealed all of this in a recent video dubbed a Retrospect with Jonathan Haggerty ahead of his ONE bantamweight Muay Thai world title defense against Thai superstar Superlek Kiatmoo9 on Sept. 6.
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He said this about his debut against Lasiri:
"I used to sit on the sofa with my father watching the UFC and all that sort of big arena fights, and we used to sit up to about three in the morning watching it. And I just knew one day, these big arenas, this is where I'd be fighting."
He added:
"For that moment to finally come, it was a bit surreal. I just looked in my dad's eyes, and he was like, this is your time, boy. It gave me a little bit of goosebumps before the fight, so I was eager to get in there."
See the full video here:
Jonathan Haggerty wants to add another Thai icon to his list
UK superstar Jonathan Haggerty had successfully defeated the likes of Sam-A and Nong-O in his career with ONE Championship, and he plans to add another name into the list.
Haggerty will have that chance when he clashes with ONE flyweight kickboxing world champion Superlek Kiatmoo9 to defend his ONE bantamweight Muay Thai belt at ONE 168: Denver, on September 6.
While the five-round tussle in itself will be epic, this is also an opportunity for Haggerty to take out Superlek, the last man who defeated his tormentor, Rodtang Jitmuangnon.
Be sure to catch the promotion's second on-ground event in the United States, as the tickets for ONE 168 are available via Ticketmaster.