"I'll be a much tougher opponent than Rodtang" - Jonathan Haggerty on wanting a hybrid-rules bout against Demetrious Johnson

Jonathan Haggerty has been calling for a mixed-rules contest for ages now. When it was announced that Rodtang Jitmuangnon would face Demetrious Johnson in a custom-rules bout, Haggerty wanted a piece of that action.

The fight went down at ONE X with 'Mighty Mouse' walking away with a submission victory during the MMA round. The Muay Thai fighter and former champion Haggerty recently reaffirmed his stance.

Ahead of his ONE 157 bout, he spoke with Dylan Bowker for Sportskeeda MMA. Haggerty said he still wanted the fight against Johnson and would perform better than Rodtang did:

"I said it when that fight got announced... I would definitely be a harder fight. My skillset is... more advanced on the ground than what Rodtang's is. All that takedown defense. My dad's got his own gym. I've been in the gym since I was a young boy, since I was like six or seven. I been growing up around MMA fighters, I've been joining classes. "

Haggerty has trained in MMA previously and explained that a fighter needs time to learn that discipline. Here's what he said about Rodtang entering the MMA world:

"You can't learn MMA in the amount of time Rodtang tried to. And me growing up for years, just learning the basics, I think that would be the difference. Yeah, like I said, I'll be a much tougher opponent than Rodtang for Demetrious Johnson."

So, how about Jonathan Haggerty vs. Demetrious Johnson next? First, Haggerty has to go through the ONE Muay Thai Flyweight Grand Prix, which starts on May 20 at ONE 157.

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Jonathan Haggerty of MMA and Muay Thai

For some time now, 'The General' has been teasing fans regarding a move to MMA. On Instagram earlier this year, the British fighter shared videos of him drilling takedown defense.

He's even gone so far as to call out Demetrious Johnson on Instagram:

“Congratulations on the win champ. [ONE Championship] let’s get this show on the road.”

However, before he can move to MMA, he must first deal with immediate business. Jonathan Haggerty will be competing in Muay Thai on the ONE 157 card. He will be taking part in the opening round of the ONE Muay Thai Flyweight Grand Prix.

On May 20, Haggerty will meet Brazilian striker Walter Goncalves. Only the winner will be able to advance in the tournament.