ONE featherweight kickboxing world champion Jonathan Haggerty rarely ever lets his foot off the gas pedal, especially if he sees that he can overpower his opponent. This fate befell former ONE strawweight Muay Thai world champion Joseph Lasiri in their January 2019 clash.
The then-debuting Haggerty understood that he needed to make a strong first impression as fans expected 'The Hurricane' to rough him up badly with his knees in the clinch.
While he had a bit of a slow start, 'The General' made up for it by repeatedly throwing his patented tomahawk elbows, which eventually led to him dropping Lasiri with about 20 seconds remaining in the opening round. Haggerty dominated the rest of the fight to win via unanimous decision.
Check out Jonathan Haggerty's relentless offense below, which ONE posted on Instagram:
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Few knew it at the time, but his one-sided showing against the Italian-Moroccan would ultimately herald his incredible tenure in the world's largest martial arts promotion.
Along with being the reigning king of the 145-pound kickboxing ranks, the 28-year-old British superstar is also the former ONE flyweight and bantamweight Muay Thai world champion.
Jonathan Haggerty still hoping to challenge Fabricio Andrade for MMA gold
After knocking out ONE bantamweight MMA world champion Fabricio Anrdade in November 2023 to capture the then-vacant bantamweight kickboxing throne, Jonathan Haggerty wanted to challenge him for the MMA crown in the hopes of becoming the first ONE athlete to hold gold in three different sports simultaneously. However, plans fell through.
In a recent interview with ONE, the Knowlesy Academy and Team Underground representative is optimistic that an MMA world title tilt with 'Wonder Boy' could still happen, saying:
"I wish I could've fought Fabricio Andrade to hold three belts simultaneously, but ONE had other plans so we'll see what happens on that front."