Haggerty Vs. Naito To Headline ONE: BIG BANG II
The world’s largest martial arts organization may be featuring some of the baddest men and women on the planet at ONE: BIG BANG this coming Friday, 4 December, but there are plans for a second dose of hard-hitting action just a week later.
On Friday, 11 December, the promotion will air ONE: BIG BANG II from the Singapore Indoor Stadium, and the show will feature a trio of mixed martial arts contests, a pair of kickboxing bouts, and a Muay Thai thriller in the headline attraction.
In the main event, former ONE Flyweight Muay Thai World Champion Jonathan “The General” Haggerty makes his highly-anticipated return against Japanese dynamo Taiki “Silent Sniper” Naito.
Haggerty had an amazing start in ONE Championship.
In January 2019, the British striker defeated the always-exciting Joseph “The Hurricane” Lasiri via unanimous decision, and afterward he dominated then-titleholder Sam-A Gaiyanghadao over the course of five rounds to win the ONE Flyweight Muay Thai World Championship later that May.
But the Englishman’s World Title reign was short-lived. In August 2019, Rodtang “The Iron Man” Jitmuangnon defeated Haggerty in a very tight five-round contest to claim the belt, and then the Thai megastar stopped him via third-round TKO in their rematch five months later.
Now, after spending the past 10 months on the sidelines, “The General” is ready to make his return and is looking for redemption.
Haggerty, who is the #3-ranked flyweight Muay Thai contender, believes he can beat Rodtang, and the road to a trilogy bout starts in Singapore.
But Haggerty isn’t the only one who wants a crack at “The Iron Man.”
Naito, a Shoot Boxing Champion who has been calling out Rodtang for the past year, has been building a great case to challenge the division’s reigning king.
After knocking out his compatriot, WMC Muay Thai Open Champion Yuta Watanabe, at ONE Japan Series: Road To Century in September 2019, “Silent Sniper” made his grand premiere on the global stage a month later and has been flawless in his promotional run ever since.
Naito defeated Alexi “Phet” Serepisos, #5-ranked strawweight Muay Thai contender Rui Botelho, and “The Baby Face Killer” Savvas Michael Petchyindee Academy to put himself on a four-bout winning streak.
If the Japanese dynamo can take out the top-five contender and former ONE World Champion on 11 December, then perhaps he could secure a spot in ONE’s Athlete Rankings and break into the title conversation.
In addition to the explosive headliner, the co-main event will feature a clash between #1-ranked lightweight kickboxing contender Nieky “The Natural” Holzken and #5-ranked Elliot “The Dragon” Compton.
The card also features the return of #4-ranked featherweight mixed martial arts contender Tetsuya “MMA Fantasista” Yamada, the main roster debut of ONE Warrior Series contract winner Ali Motamed, and more!
Take a look below for the full lineup.
Full Card For ONE: BIG BANG II
- Jonathan Haggerty vs. Taiki Naito (ONE Super Series Muay Thai – flyweight)
- Nieky Holzken vs. Elliot Compton (ONE Super Series kickboxing – lightweight)
- Tetsuya Yamada vs. Kim Jae Woong (mixed martial arts – featherweight)
- Errol Zimmerman vs. Rade Opacic (ONE Super Series kickboxing – heavyweight)
- Agilan Thani vs. Tyler McGuire (mixed martial arts – welterweight)
- Ali Motamed vs. Chen Rui (mixed martial arts – bantamweight)
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