"My whole body went numb" - Jonathan Haggerty admits he was in a state of shock after monumental win over Sam-A
Jonathan Haggerty has enjoyed plenty of exhilarating moments on the global stage, and one right amongst the cream of the crop was his win first world title win over Muay Thai icon Sam-A Gaiyanghadao.
The Englishman, who has since attained two-sport glory in the promotion, took a trip down memory lane to revisit his clash against the living legend at ONE: For Honor in May 2019.
Fresh off his triumphant debut outing against Joseph Lasiri, 'The General' faced an uphill battle even before stepping foot inside the ring. Sam-A was 2-0 in ONE Championship after back-to-back knockouts of Joseph Lasiri and Sergio Wielzen.
Unfortunately for the striking veteran, the Londoner had his weapons ready to let loose, as he saw off the Thai after a thrilling five-round war to lay his hands on the ONE flyweight Muay Thai world championship.
In a recent clip posted on his YouTube channel, Jonathan Haggerty had this to say on that very special night:
"It was just like...my whole body went numb. I think it was after the fight in the hotel lobby or in the back room where it all hit me."
"And I was just like, I've actually done it. I had a 10 percent chance of winning that fight. But now, I've actually got the championship belt, which was crazy."
Truth be told, it was anything but easy for the young Brit as Sam-A never backed down once. But over the course of the tie, the Knowlesy Academy and Team Underground superstar used his crafty stand-up tools to find gaps within his rival's defense to bag home a unanimous decision win.
Watch the full video here:
Jonathan Haggerty chomping at the bit to take out another Thai superstar next
Though Jonathan Haggerty went on to drop back-to-back fights against Rodtang, eventually losing his flyweight Muay Thai crown, the Englishman has been in pristine shape since switching up to the bantamweight ranks.
'The General' currently enjoys a 6-0 run with successive knockouts of Nong-O Hama and Fabricio Andrade on his way to the promotion's bantamweight Muay Thai and kickboxing gold respectively.
Next up, the 27-year-old squares off against Superlek Kiatmoo9 in a ONE bantamweight Muay Thai world title contest at ONE 168: Denver inside the Ball Arena on September 6.
Follow this link to purchase tickets for ONE Championship's hotly anticipated on-ground return to North America.