JONATHAN Haggerty has praised the influence of his girlfriend ahead of his title defence – and reckons she could even follow him into the ring.
Haggerty is preparing for his first defence of his ONE Muay Thai bantamweight world championship belt against Brazil’s Felipe Lobo at the Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok on Friday (February 16).
‘The General’ Haggerty met Kenzie Draper when they both lived in London with the pair now based in Koh Samui, Thailand.
“It’s great having her alongside me,” Haggerty said. “It’s motivational. I get to come home after a hard day of training, have a little chill with her, and let my hair down.
“When I’m in fight camp, she’s in fight camp. She hears all the moaning, she gets an earful sometimes, but she’s very supportive of what I do. And I couldn’t do it without her, if I am totally honest. So, I’m very grateful that I have someone beside me.”
Haggerty is currently the main breadwinner and bagged a $100,000 bonus when he knocked out Fabricio Andrade in the second round to win the ONE kickboxing world championship in November.
“I’m very thankful, being able to get all the bonuses and to be very secure here in Thailand, to do what I love and obviously support my girlfriend as well,” Haggerty said.
“I’m very thankful for ONE and Chatri [Sityodtong, CEO of ONE]. I’ll just keep putting on performances and then stacking them bonuses.”
Draper is often working out at the gym at the same time as Haggerty.
He added: “It’s great. That’s one of the greatest things about our relationship – she loves the gym as well. Her training alongside me is very motivational. It’s just great to have.
“We’ve been talking about letting her fight in one of the stadiums here in Koh Samui. Just a little fight, but I don’t know if I’d like it to happen. I’m not too sure. We’ll have to see. But if she wants to do it, why not?”