ONE: ‘For Honor’ is set for Jakarta this Friday night. In the main event at Istora Senayan Sam-A Gaiyanghadao will defend his flyweight Muay Thai title against Jonathan Haggerty and the two faced off for the first time yesterday.
It has been a year since Sam-A won the title and he will be making his first defence of the belt. The Muay Thai veteran is excited to be participating in what will be just his third ONE Super Series fight,
“It feels good to be back. Winning the title is a huge honor for Thailand and I am proud to represent Muay Thai on the global stage of competition. My opponent is young and hungry, and determined to take my title. But I’ve faced a lot of adversity throughout my career (and) I am prepared to defend my belt and bring glory to my country. I am thankful for the opportunity to showcase my skills once more to millions of fans around the world.”
Sam-A has a huge advantage in terms of experience. He’s won numerous titles and tournaments during his career and was a multiple division champion at Lumpinee Stadium.
Haggerty, who looked significantly larger, knows all about his opponent and the Englishman believes he’s capable of causing an upset,
“I thank ONE Championship for this amazing opportunity. Fighting for the title against a legend like Sam-A Gaiyanghadao is a huge honor (because) I’ve been watching him since I was a teenager. He’s an absolute warrior and just a machine. Now I’m fighting him and it’s brilliant. I hope he’s training hard, because I’m no pushover.”
