‘We’re More Than Ready’ – Jonathan Haggerty Training At Altitude In Denver Ahead Of World Title Fight With Superlek
Jonathan “The General” Haggerty is leaving nothing to chance for his wildly anticipated clash against “The Kicking Machine” Superlek Kiatmoo9 in the main event of ONE 168: Denver.
On September 6, the British superstar will defend his ONE Bantamweight Muay Thai World Title against a man many consider the planet’s top pound-for-pound striker.
Indeed, Superlek comes into the contest as the reigning ONE Flyweight Kickboxing World Champion and riding an incredible 10-fight winning streak that includes victories over the likes of Rodtang Jitmuangnon and Takeru Segawa.
Well aware of the threat he’s facing, Haggerty has been putting in the work needed to retain his gold.
He told onefc.com:
“We’ve left no stone unturned. I know everybody says this, but really, this is the hardest camp I’ve ever done. This is 13 weeks of solid, hard work, dieting, head down.”
“The General” spent the first nine weeks of his camp building up his stamina and sharpening his weapons in Thailand, but he’s now finishing his preparations at altitude in Denver.
As the reigning ONE Bantamweight Muay Thai and Kickboxing World Champion who has scored a trio of highlight-reel finishes in his most recent outings, Haggerty already looks to be in the best shape of his career.
The work he’s doing in Denver to adjust to the altitude, he says, has elevated his game even further and will pay dividends on fight night:
“We’re out here in Denver acclimatizing. I think it was a great idea to come out four weeks before the fight.
“We just wanted to get a head start. We wanted to get our foot in the door as soon as possible. You know, we wanted to get a head start. So we came out to Denver four weeks before to acclimatize, get used to it, no excuses. So when fight night comes, we’re more than ready.”
Haggerty admits that Denver’s thin air is taxing on the lungs.
But with four weeks spent in the mountains, pushing his body to the limit while getting used to the altitude, he’s ready to fight at a high pace for five full rounds, if needed.
Beyond the physical benefits of adjusting to the environment, he says it’s also given him a mental edge:
“We’re so high up, and I’m trying to catch a breath after a hectic round on the pads. It’s pretty hard. The first day we got here, it was hard. But we’ve done so well to acclimatize so early, and we’re up in the mountains now running, doing our fitness.
“I mean, it’s an advantage, but mainly, it’s great for the mind, you know? Just to know that you are ready and one step ahead.”
Haggerty Runs At Red Rocks: ‘It’s Very Pure Out Here’
While Jonathan Haggerty’s training camp for Superlek Kiatmoo9 might be the most demanding of his career, he’s also taken the time to enjoy his picturesque surroundings in Colorado.
He spoke about the weeks he’s spent in the mountains:
“I love it. I love the culture out here, everything. I love the mountains and being surrounded by the mountains. We were up there this morning, running the mountains. It’s very pure out here.”
The Brit has been able to incorporate the majestic scenery into his training routine, even getting in a solid cardio session at the famed Red Rocks Park outside of Denver:
“So today we went up to Red Rocks for a bit of altitude training. We done some stair runs, some sprints. It’s pretty hard. But each training session is hard. I enjoy it when it’s hard. If it’s not hard, I don’t enjoy it.”
Surrounded by clean mountain air and beautiful scenery, Haggerty is finding extra motivation to push himself even harder as he prepares for ONE 168 and his blockbuster showdown with Superlek.
As hard as the camp has been, he’s happy to be finishing it in Denver, and his early-morning run at Red Rocks isn’t something he’ll soon forget:
“Yeah it’s amazing, the atmosphere, just soaking it all in, really, especially when we was there when the sun was just rising.
“So it was a great, great experience, just to experience it with all of us. And yeah, it was amazing. Somewhere I’ll definitely come back to.”
