"We wanted to get a head start" - Jonathan Haggerty explains decision to add altitude training for title defense vs. Superlek

Jonathan Haggerty isn't leaving anything up to chance ahead of what may be the biggest fight of his career. 'The General' is well experienced at the highest level, but his next fight brings a unique challenge to the table.

Not to mention the fact that he is going up against one of the best in the world, he has other outside factors to take into account before September 6. In the main event of ONE 168, he will put his ONE bantamweight Muay Thai world championship on the line against Superlek at the Ball Arena in Denver.

Fighting in Denver means that you have to prepare for competing at altitude, which puts a lot of strain on your lungs and cardio.

Haggerty has been well ahead of the curve on this by getting out to the US nice and early for the final weeks of his camp, compared to Superlek, who doesn't step foot in Denver until September 1.

In an interview with ONE Championship, the defending champion spoke about his decision to put the final touches on his preparations in the US:

"We just wanted to get a head start. We wanted to get our foot in the door as soon as possible. You know, we wanted to get a head start. So we came out to Denver four weeks before to acclimatize, get used to it, no excuses. So when fight night comes, we're more than ready."

Jonathan Haggerty has become a true professional

When Jonathan Haggerty debuted in ONE Championship many years ago, he was still a fresh-faced contender with a lot of promise. In that time, we have seen him evolve as a striker and as a man, with him now reigning as the two-sport world champion.

His decision to move to bantamweight showed how he was starting to take matters into his own hand to put his level of performance over anything else.

The same can be said for his plan to upsticks and train in Denver for such a massive fight.

Tickets for ONE 168: Denver are available via Ticketmaster.