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ONE flyweight Muay Thai champion Rodtang Jitmuangnon is a man you don't want to make angry. If you look at the way fights, you would assume his opponents owed him a great deal of money.
The much-feared Muay Thai wrecking machine is violence personified. This makes his epic rivalry with then-champion Johnathan 'The General' Haggerty all the more memorable.
At a time when no one dared to call out Rodtang, 'The General' openly challenged him. What came next was one of the most exciting and intense two-fight rivalries in Muay Thai history. In a video released by ONE Championship, we saw a recap of their rivalry for the ages.
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If you look at the tale-of-the-tape, the matchup was as perfect as they come. A tall, lengthy technician with clinical precision and footwork versus a stocky, powerful aggressor with unbelievable pressure.
Their first fight ran at a pace that could cause someone to have a heart attack just by tuning in. The tightly-contested bout had both fighters throwing their best weapons and then some at one another. When the final bell rang, Rodtang took the fight via unanimous decision, earning him the belt.
In the rematch, seemingly having learned from his mistakes from the first fight, Rodtang Jitmuangnon did more of what he does best: pressure.
The Thai slugger stalked the Brit for all five rounds while eating everything coming his way. The ONE flyweight Muay Thai champion ended the night in the third round, knocking down 'The General' three straight times to earn an automatic TKO victory.
Though the rivalry stands at 2-0, both warriors are still in their 20's and are still reaching their primes. This rivalry might be far from over.
Watch the rivalry recap here:
Rivals Rodtang Jitmuangnon and Jonathan Haggerty will take part in ONE's first-ever flyweight Muay Thai Grand Prix
As it happens, we might see the two rivals clash again sooner rather than later. As announced recently, ONE is set to have its inaugural flyweight Muay Thai Grand Prix tournament.
The eight-man elimination-type tournament will have the best 135-pound Muay Thai kickboxers in the world. Needless to say, Rodtang Jitmuangnon and Jonathan Haggerty will be in their brackets.
The first two quarter-final matches will happen at ONE 157. Rodtang will face ONE debutant Jacob Smith, the No1-ranked Muay Thai fighter in the UK. Haggerty, meanwhile, will face 71-6 Walter Goncalves from Brazil.
With both rivals facing difficult matchups ahead of them, we're not sure if the two will eventually clash in the tournament. If they do, we're sure to have another exciting chapter in their legendary rivary.
