Jonathan Haggerty Set for First Muay Thai Title Defense Against Felipe Lobo at ONE Fight Night 19 Headline

Published 01/16/2024, 2:19 AM EST

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Jonathan Haggerty wants to show that he’s a fighting champion, and he’ll have a chance to do so when he defends his Muay Thai gold in his next ONE Championship outing. At ONE Fight Night 19 on Friday, February 16, “The General” will put his ONE Bantamweight Muay Thai World Title on the line.

He’ll fight against #2-ranked contender Felipe Lobo inside the Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand. All the action will be presented live and free on Prime Video for fans in North America. But this event will mark the first time an Englishman has headlined an event shown on British television via UK broadcasting giant Sky Sports, per its new partnership with ONE. 

ONE Fight Night 19 has an electrifying fight for British TV

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The 26-year-old has constantly put on electrifying performances in the world’s largest martial arts organization, and he cemented his place among the pound-for-pound fighters on the planet last year. A former ONE Flyweight Muay Thai World Champion, Haggerty debuted at bantamweight last April.

He shocked everyone by knocking out longtime divisional king Nong-O Hama in the first round of their bout, ending the Thai legend’s undefeated streak in the promotion and claiming the bantamweight World Title. Seven months later, at ONE Fight Night 16, he squared off with the division’s MMA titleholder, Fabricio Andrade, for the vacant ONE Bantamweight Kickboxing World Championship.

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His dominant striking game proved too much for “Wonder Boy” that evening, and he succumbed to a knockout in round two to hand Haggerty his second piece of gold. He’ll return to his bread and butter at ONE Fight Night 19 in the hopes of cementing his reign.

However, Lobo will do everything to prevent that, and his skills shouldn’t be discounted. He’s coming off an impressive third-round finish of Thai striking star Saemapetch Fairtex on the same night Haggerty took the gold away from Nong-O. 

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Will Haggerty snatch his win this time around too?

The Tiger Muay Thai representative was also present when “The General” won his kickboxing strap – as a cornerman for his teammate Andrade – and he shared some choice words with him after the bout. With current top-ranked divisional contender Nong-O losing his latest outing to Nico Carrillo at ONE Friday Fights 46 last month, the path has been paved for “Demolition Man” to now back up his barbs. 

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And with no one to separate them this time around, it will be a fiery encounter at ONE Fight Night 19. Haggerty and his striking prowess have been proven before. However, will it be enough for him to remain a champion? A title defense like this one calls for a lot. Will he reign supreme?

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Written by:

Prit Chauhan

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I'm Prit Chauhan, and I'm a UFC writer at EssentiallySports. I've been in the writing business for three years, covering areas like mass media marketing, and even tried my hand at fiction. My experience includes research work at the University of California, Berkeley, which helps me spin fact-based stories about the world of Mixed Martial Arts effortlessly.
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Edited by:

Joyita Das