British strawweight Muay Thai contender Freddie Haggerty saw his three-fight winning streak snapped in his last outing.
That unanimous decision loss to Jordan Estupinan opened his eyes to the areas he’s still lacking.
Despite the humbling result, the 21-year-old does not shy away from the sting of that loss. He told ONE Championship in an exclusive interview:
“At first, I was sad, obviously, when I lost. I hate losing, and it broke my momentum of knockouts. But I came out of there, and everyone said that the way I fought was good. And that boosted me up more than a boring win would have.”
Get the latest updates on One Championship Rankings at Sportskeeda and more
Freddie Haggerty has sights on vindication when he steps into the ring at The Inner Circle on Friday, May 22.
The younger brother of ONE bantamweight kickboxing world champion Jonathan ‘The General’ Haggerty faces fellow young star Yonis Anane in a three-rounder at Bangkok’s iconic Lumpinee Stadium.
The Knowlesy Academy and Team Underground affiliate knows the only path to redemption is by getting his hand raised.
Fans can watch all the action live by purchasing The Inner Circle at live.onefc.com.
Freddie Haggerty reflects on lessons he learned from first ONE loss
The loss hurt, but what Freddie Haggerty showed after being knocked down told a far more compelling story. Getting dropped in Round 2 would have broken lesser competitors, but he came back in Round 3, hunting for the finish.
The 21-year-old eventually lost on the scorecards, but the defeat gave him something that no easy victory could have.
“So, in terms of getting dropped in Round 2, and in Round 3 pushing the pace, sticking it on him, trying the hardest to get that stoppage, it showed my heart, it showed everyone what I’m really about,” he said.
“So, I learned a lot from that fight. I’ve got the heart, I’ve got the spirit to fight. But yeah, it was sad. I lost. But at the same time, a big win as well at the same time.”
Edited by Aziel Karthak