“I ended up being too confident” – Fabricio Andrade reveals he came in hurt for Jonathan Haggerty fight

Fabricio Andrade came up short at ONE Fight Night 16
Fabricio Andrade came up short at ONE Fight Night 16.

Fabricio Andrade looks back on ONE Fight Night 16 as a difficult moment in his career from which he has learned a lot of crucial lessons.

The Brazilian knockout specialist suffered the first loss of his ONE Championship career when he stepped into the world of striking to face Jonathan Haggerty for the vacant ONE bantamweight kickboxing world championship.

After the fight, ‘Wonder Boy’ revealed that he didn’t come into the contest in ideal shape, elaborating more on the experience without playing into any form of excuse.

Andrade puts the blame on himself for stepping inside the Circle whilst knowing that he was compromised but being too headstrong to take a step back and view the bigger picture.

The bantamweight MMA world champion told ONE Championship that the injury didn’t just affect his physical condition. It impacted his mentality in the fight and gameplan:

“I ended up being too confident and wanted to fight even though I knew I wasn't 100 percent. And I think it even affected my confidence, because I knew I wasn't in my best shape.
“I couldn't loosen up my game, I couldn't work on my boxing, I was a little stuck and afraid to let go of my hands due to the shoulder and neck injury. I wanted to take the fight to the later rounds, where I would try to be more aggressive.”

Fabricio Andrade will only be stronger as a result of learning this lesson

Facing adversity is nothing new to Fabricio Andrade, and setbacks are often the makings of world champions.

The Brazilian’s incredible run to the top of the bantamweight division won’t be forgotten in a hurry. Despite losing his last fight, he still reigns supreme in his natural ruleset of MMA.

Had he lost the fight and not learned anything from the experience, this could actually be considered a cause for concern.

Instead, he has learned a lot about himself and his body, and that will only make him better than ever going forward as he takes both positives and negatives from his defeats.

North American viewers with an active Prime Video subscription can rewatch all of the action from ONE Fight Night 16 via the free event replay.

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