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Jonathan Haggerty has opened the door to a trilogy fight with Rodtang Jitmuangnon and another meeting with Superlek Kiatmoo9 – the two rivals responsible for his only defeats in ONE Championship.
Rodtang recently signed a new deal with the promotion, bringing one of its biggest stars back into the fold and reviving the possibility of another chapter with Haggerty.
“Me and Rodtang go way back,” Haggerty told the Bangkok Post. “We’ve shared the ring together twice. Third time, why not?”
The Thai star took the ONE flyweight Muay Thai title from Haggerty by unanimous decision in their first meeting in Manila in 2019.
ONE bantamweight kickboxing champion Jonathan Haggerty, right, watches from ringside alongside his younger brother Freddie at The Inner Circle 30 in Bangkok
Rodtang then stopped the Englishman with a series of body shots in the third round of their rematch in Bangkok the following year.
Haggerty, 29, has since moved up to bantamweight and won ONE titles in Muay Thai and kickboxing, while Rodtang has continued to compete primarily at flyweight.
Neither a weight nor ruleset was discussed for a potential third fight, and Haggerty stopped short of claiming talks had taken place.
Rodtang’s spell away from ONE followed a bitter contract dispute after he declared himself a free agent. The promotion subsequently began legal proceedings over alleged contractual breaches in Thailand, Japan and Singapore.
ONE Thailand president Jitinat “Plai” Asdamongkol shakes hands with Rodtang Jitmuangnon after the Thai superstar agreed a new deal with the promotion
The two sides eventually reconciled and agreed a more lucrative new deal in July, removing one obvious obstacle to a trilogy fight.
Haggerty is equally willing to revisit his rivalry with Superlek, who took his bantamweight Muay Thai crown with a counter elbow just 49 seconds into their ONE 168 main event in Denver.
Asked whether he still wanted the rematch, Haggerty was unequivocal.
“Of course,” he said. “I’m ready for it all. You know me. I’m ready. No problem at all.”
Superlek is not an immediate option after suffering a torn ACL during his rematch with Abdulla Dayakaev at The Inner Circle 25 in Bangkok last month.
Superlek Kiatmoo9 celebrates after stopping Jonathan Haggerty to win the ONE bantamweight Muay Thai title at ONE 168 in Denver
The injury forced the reigning ONE flyweight kickboxing champion out of a scheduled title defence against Jonathan Di Bella at ONE Samurai 4, and he has since undergone surgery.
While Superlek’s own fortunes have since faded – losing the title on the scale and slipping to four successive defeats – Haggerty responded to that devastating loss by retaining his kickboxing title against Wei Rui and Yuki Yoza over five rounds.
Before either old rivalry can be revisited, Haggerty will make the third defence of that belt against former champion Hiroki Akimoto in the ONE Samurai 4 main event at Tokyo’s Ariake Arena next month.
Haggerty said defeats had repeatedly driven him to improve rather than derailing his career.
Jonathan Haggerty celebrates after retaining his ONE bantamweight kickboxing title against Yuki Yoza at ONE Samurai 1 in Tokyo
“Every time you come up against a loss, you’ve got to come back as strong as possible,” he said.
“Some people lose and they can’t come back. Champions come back and do what they’ve got to do.
“Every time I’ve lost, I’ve gone on to better myself – in training, in fighting and in all aspects of life. When losing, I always come back stronger.”
