Superlek Kiatmoo9’s stunning 49-second knockout win over former two-sport ONE Champion Jonathan Haggerty has caught the attention of Joe Rogan.
The leading podcaster and MMA pundit brought up the ONE 168: Denver main event on the latest episode of his wildly popular “Joe Rogan Experience” series.
Rogan gushed about “The Kicking Machine” to his guests John Rallo, former UFC Champion Matt Serra, and Din Thomas, following the event at Denver, Colorado’s Ball Arena on Sep. 6.
“Dude, Superlek is this bada** Muay Thai fighter, and he fought Jonathan Haggerty, who was the champion. He caught him with this over-the-top elbow, and it happened real quick in the fight, I think 40 seconds,” Rogan said.
Superlek landed a perfectly placed elbow strike on the advancing Haggerty during the early exchanges, leaving the British star flat on his back and unable to answer the referee’s count.
After taking his podcast guests through the footage of the stunning finish, Rogan broke down the fight-ending elbow.
“What I saw that was interesting, someone broke down, there a was a video breakdown of his tells,” he said of Haggerty.
“Haggerty has a certain hop, hop, and then he goes in. Superlek had timed it. He tried it earlier in the round and didn’t catch it, then look at this [pointing to screen], perfect timing. He gets his head off the center line and, oh my god, perfect elbow.”
Superlek’s slick maneuver has made waves across the globe, with clips of it quickly spreading across social media.
Not only has it taken the Thai superstar to a whole new level of global fame, but it also saw him take home Haggerty’s ONE Bantamweight Muay Thai Title, which he added to the flyweight kickboxing strap he has held since January 2023.
Rogan’s comments have echoed the overall sentiment following ONE 168: Denver. The action-packed card saw seven of the nine fights end inside the distance, with six fighters taking home a US$100,000 performance bonus for their showings.
With ONE’s second foray in the United States being heralded as a success, the scene is set for the promotion’s next event on U.S. shores. ONE 169: Atlanta will go down live inside State Farm Arena in Atlanta, Georgia, on Nov. 8.
ONE’s third event on American soil is topped by four World Title contests, including some of the promotions biggest stars such as Rodtang Jitmuangnon, Anatoly Malykhin, Tawanchai PK Saenchai, and the returning Christian Lee.