“Open him up” - Jonathan Haggerty looks to put the beatdown on Chinese icon Wei Rui at ONE 171: Qatar

Jonathan Haggerty plans to lay it on Chinese kickboxing star Wei Rui when the two go toe-to-toe on martial arts' biggest global stage.

Emanating from the Lusail Sports Arena, ONE 171: Qatar will be headlined by a massive title tilt as reigning ONE bantamweight kickboxing world champion Jonathan Haggerty puts his 26 pounds of gold on the line against the division's top-ranked contender, Wei Rui.

Wei earned his opportunity to challenge Haggerty with a stunning unanimous decision victory over former ONE world titleholder Hiroki Akimoto in his promotional debut last year.

Knowing he's got his work cut out for him, Haggerty believes his key to victory will be to open up Wei and put the 'Demon Blade' down when the opportunity presents itself.

"We know what he likes to throw," Haggerty told Inside Fighting. "It’s just up to us now to make all the adjustments, little fakes, and open him up. So make him fall when the chance comes."

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Around this same time last year, ONE Championship made its critically acclaimed debut in Qatar with a stacked ONE 166 card that concluded with Anatoly Malykhin making history as the promotion's first-ever simultaneous three-division world champion.

While Jonathan Haggerty did not compete at the event, he was there to take in the sights and soak in all the festivities.

This time, he'll be in the main event spotlight, and 'The General' couldn't be more excited to put on a show for fight fans in the Middle Eastern country.

"Yeah, I went out to Qatar for the last ONE Championship event," he told the promotion. "It was a great experience. Great people over there. Great culture. So, happy to be back there to put on a show."

Which fight are you most looking forward to when ONE Championship makes its return to Qatar?

ONE 171: Qatar will emanate from the Lusail Sports Arena in Qatar on Thursday, February 20. Head over to watch.onefc.com to learn more about how you can watch the event live.