WATCH: Jonathan Haggerty retains his throne, snaps Wei Rui's 21-fight winning streak in blistering exchange at ONE 171

ONE 171: Qatar on Thursday, Feb. 20, was stacked with must-watch battles across the 13-fight event. Chief among them was the high-level chess match between ONE bantamweight kickboxing world champion Jonathan Haggerty and Wei Rui.

From the opening bell, they cautiously traded leather out of respect for each other's power. The momentum seesawed between 'The General' and his challenger throughout the early rounds, though Haggerty was getting the upper hand in most exchanges.

Late in the fourth round was where Haggerty's fight IQ shined. Seeing that Wei had dropped his hands momentarily, he immediately fired his signature teep kick to Wei's face, which swung the momentum entirely in his favor. Haggerty retained the gold via unanimous decision.

Check out the highlights of their five-round encounter below:

What makes the victory extra special for the 28-year-old is that he is the first fighter to defeat the former K-1 lightweight world champion in seven years and snap his 21-fight winning streak.

Haggerty now has nine wins in his six-year ONE tenure.

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Jonathan Haggerty stacks praise on Wei Rui for ONE 171 showing

Jonathan Haggerty had every right to talk his talk during the ONE 171 post-fight interview with ONE commentator Mitch Chilson after defeating a formidable opponent like Wei Rui. However, he also used the interview to give the Tangshan Wenlu Xiaoqi Gedou product his flowers.

Haggerty declared:

"You know, what was the hardest thing, a lot of people were writing off Wei Rui. What a great opponent, you know. One of the best I've been in there with. It was a pleasure to share the cage with him. What a pleasure. And also thank you to Chatri and the whole of ONE Championship."

The full replay of ONE 171 is available to fans who purchased the pay-per-view at watch.onefc.com.