Haggerty claimed the ONE Bantamweight Kickboxing World Title with a victory over Lobo’s teammate, Fabricio “Wonder Boy” Andrade by knockout in November; Haggerty faced Lobo in the first defence of his Bantamweight title on Saturday morning.
Saturday 17 February 2024 10:36, UK
Two-sport ONE World Champion Jonathan Haggerty came under fire against Felipe Lobo, but roared back to successfully defend his bantamweight Muay Thai crown in the ONE Fight Night 19 main event.
"The General" found himself on the canvas in the opening round at Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand, as Lobo exploded out of the blocks in the bantamweight Muay Thai grudge match.
After diligently chipping away at Haggerty's body, the Brazilian knockout artist unloaded a furious volley of punches to leave the defending champion slumped against the ropes.
South-east Londoner Haggerty answered the referee's standing eight-count and survived the rest of the first stanza.
Haggerty came out like a man on a mission in round two, unloading heavy leather and scoring a knockdown of his own midway through the period. From then on, the pair stood toe-to-toe until the bell in a chaotic back-and-forth battle of wills.
Both men needed a re-set to start the third stanza, as the effects of the wild second round took its toll. But it was Haggerty that sprung to life first.
The 26-year-old uncorked a huge right hand at the 40-second mark, sending Lobo crashing to the canvas. "Demolition Man" rose to his feet, but he was on wobbly legs and unable to recover. The fight was waved off just moments later.
A jubilant Haggerty moved his record to 22-4 and netted yet another US$50,000 performance bonus for the dramatic victory, his seventh win on the bounce.
In his post-fight interview, Haggerty called for another shot at Lobo's Tiger Muay Thai stablemate Fabricio "Wonder Boy" Andrade, but this time with the Brazilian's ONE Bantamweight MMA World Title on the line.
"I'll be totally honest, throughout this fight camp, my mind is on Andrade's MMA belt," Haggerty said.
"I'm going to be consistent with it. I'm going to push for it. We've already been working behind closed doors. We've made contacts, links that are ready to work with us. So Andrade, when you're ready, I'm ready to throw a triangle or two onto you. Let's go."
Liam Nolan comes up short against Nauzet Trujillo
Earlier in the night, London's "Lethal" Liam Nolan went down by unanimous decision to scrappy Spaniard Nauzet Trujillo.
After a tense opening round, Trujillo dropped the British Muay Thai lightweight fighter with a pinpoint chopping elbow that appeared to damage his nose.
It proved to be the decisive moment in what was a close fight, as the Spaniard earned the nod on all three of the judges' scorecards.
The 34-year-old put the lightweight Muay Thai division on notice with the 49th victory of his professional career.
Nolan lost some momentum in the defeat, which saw his two-fight winning streak get snapped.
ONE Bantamweight Muay Thai World Title: Jonathan Haggerty (c) defeated Felipe Lobo via TKO (referee stoppage - right punch) Round 3, 0:45
Bantamweight Muay Thai: Saemapetch Fairtex defeated Mohamed Younes Rabah via TKO (three knockdowns - punch-elbow combination) Round 1, 1:33
Strawweight MMA: Lito Adiwang defeated Danial Williams via unanimous decision
Lightweight Muay Thai: Nauzet Trujillo defeated Liam Nolan via unanimous decision
Welterweight MMA: Hiroyuki Tetsuka defeated Abraao Amorim via submission (armbar) Round 1, 4:57
Featherweight Muay Thai: Luke Lessei defeated Eddie Abasolo via split decision
Strawweight Muay Thai: Martyna Kierczynska defeated Nat Jaroonsak via TKO (referee stoppage - punch combination) Round 2, 1:24
Strawweight MMA: Mansur Malachiev defeated Yosuke Saruta via unanimous decision
Strawweight Muay Thai: Thongpoon PK Saenchai defeated Timur Chuikov via TKO (three knockdowns) Round 1, 1:37
