ONE bantamweight Muay Thai champion Jonathan Haggerty conquered a second sport at ONE Fight Night 16 on Friday — and the Brit now has a third title in his sights.
Haggerty claimed kickboxing gold against MMA champ Fabricio Andrade in the main event on streaming platform Prime Video, with the action-packed fight playing out at the famed Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand.
“The General” sealed the deal in the second round, when he began teeing off on Andrade, who soon found himself under a constant barrage of strikes. For a moment, it appeared the Brazilian had recovered, but a right hand dropped him a short time later — and he stumbled on his way up. That was enough for the ref to wave off the fight, giving Haggerty the knockout victory, and more importantly, a second title in ONE Championship.
After the bout, Haggerty called for a third, as he now has his sights set on Andrade’s mixed martial arts championship. The decorated striker has long been asked about a crossover to MMA, and it appears the time is now.
“Fabricio, I want your MMA belt,” he exclaimed, shortly before learning that he had won not one but two $50,000 Performance bonuses with the win.
“I’m feeling amazing. You can’t beat this feeling Mitch,” Haggerty told ONE Championship broadcaster Mitch Chilson following the win. “That’s what I’m doing this for.” Later, the 26-year old added that “Through dedication and hard work, anything is possible.”
A third title certainly is possible, but it won’t be easy. Current ONE atomweight champ Stamp Fairtex has won titles in Muay Thai, Kickboxing, and MMA — but she was not able to hold all three simultaneously. Doing that would be a historic first, if Jonathan Haggerty can pull it off in the near future. If it’s not in the cards, of course, there are no shortage of contenders for his Muay Thai and now kickboxing belts.
Official Result: Jonathan Haggerty def. Fabricio Andrade by KO, Round 2, 1:57 — for the ONE bantamweight kickboxing championship
