ONE Bantamweight MMA World Champion Fabricio “Wonder Boy” Andrade is confident that his show-stopping strength will make the difference against Jonathan “The General” Haggerty at ONE Fight Night 16 on Prime Video.
On November 3 in U.S. primetime, “Wonder Boy” will battle the ONE Bantamweight Muay Thai World Champion for the vacant ONE Bantamweight Kickboxing World Title, with both superstars aiming to become two-sport kings.
As the pure striker by trade, Haggerty is widely considered to have the advantage in this matchup.
However, Andrade categorically disagrees with that assessment. He points out that his foe has competed exclusively in Muay Thai, whereas he will bring a wealth of professional kickboxing experience to their clash at Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand.
The 26-year-old said:
“I think I’m more used to the rules of kickboxing. I haven’t fought kickboxing for a long time, but I train constantly. So, I believe I will have an advantage because of that.”
For his part, Andrade has fought solely in MMA for the past several years, amassing an undefeated ONE record en route to claiming the bantamweight gold.
Still, he thinks the British sensation is facing the bigger challenge of transitioning from Muay Thai to kickboxing for the very first time:
“It’s going to be a very difficult fight for him. Haggerty has never done kickboxing, so he’s not used to the rules. People say he has the advantage because I’m drastically changing sports from MMA to kickboxing, something nobody wants to do, but I think it’s going to be much more difficult for him.”
What’s more, the Brazilian is sure he’ll be the more powerful striker on fight night.
With four highlight-reel stoppages due to strikes in ONE already, Andrade has proven to be one of the most feared knockout artists in all of MMA, capable of ending a bout with knees, kicks, or punches.
Moreover, he sees Haggerty’s 2020 knockout loss to ONE Flyweight Muay Thai World Champion Rodtang Jitmuangnon as evidence that he won’t be able to handle even more force at bantamweight.
“Wonder Boy” stated:
“Haggerty was knocked out by Rodtang, and that defeat was in a division below. As we are a category above, there will be a big difference in power in the strikes. And I believe that I have much more punching power than the guys in the lower division. So, Haggerty will really feel the power of my punches in this weight division.”
Andrade Breaks Down Haggerty’s Game
While Fabricio Andrade is brimming with confidence ahead of his Kickboxing World Title showdown with Jonathan Haggerty, that doesn’t mean he hasn’t done his homework on the bantamweight Muay Thai titleholder.
He acknowledges that “The General” is a master technician who’s always ready to capitalize on the smallest of openings.
At the same time, he notes that Haggerty won’t have access to one of his best weapons – elbow strikes:
“He is a very technical fighter and that is one of his strengths. He works well on his opponent’s mistakes. But I believe the strong point of his [Muay Thai] game is his feints to land his elbows. But, as it will be a kickboxing fight, he won’t be able to use elbows.”
Pushed to predict how Haggerty will approach their match, “Wonder Boy” believes the Brit will bring a largely defensive game plan to the ring in an effort to avoid his massive punching power.
Andrade added:
“It will be interesting to see what different things he can bring to a kickboxing fight. But I think he will fight strategically and try to play a counter game to prevent me from working on my boxing.”
