Former ONE Strawweight Kickboxing World Champion Jonathan Di Bella lost his crown in unfortunate circumstances this past April. Now, he plans to channel the disappointment into the biggest win of his career.
The Italian-Canadian will get the opportunity to do just that in the main event of the stacked ONE Friday Fights 68 on June 28 when he faces reigning strawweight Muay Thai divisional king Prajanchai PK Saenchai at Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand.
Di Bella was stripped of the gold after a weigh-in day illness scuppered the originally scheduled showdown with Prajanchai.
In a recent interview with ONE, the 27-year-old looked back on the dramatic day.
“I went to do the faceoff because I was hoping that the fight was still going on. I was going to the hospital, and I thought maybe they could give me something to make me feel better. I remember facing off, and I was holding in my puke. I was about to throw up on him. I’m like, ‘Don’t throw up on him. This thing’s going viral if I puke!’” Di Bella recalled.
“So we went to the hospital, I threw up, they put me back on the bed, they put IVs in me, and I woke up in my hotel room the next day. I don’t remember what happened. I was still not feeling well. But then I started realizing I had lost my belt, and I couldn’t believe this had happened. As soon as I found out, it was heartbreaking.”
Now recovered from the illness, Di Bella is planning a triumphant return to the top of the mountain.
Jonathan Di Bella is ready for world title glory in enemy territory
Jonathan Di Bella feels that the odds will be stacked against him at ONE Friday Fights 68 when he battles ONE Strawweight Muay Thai World Champion Prajanchai PK Saenchai.
The now-vacant ONE Strawweight Kickboxing World Title will be on the line when the pair finally meet, and the undefeated Di Bella plans on making June 28 his night.
“I have a champion’s mindset, but now I’m the underdog, so I feel even more focused. I want to win every fight, but especially now that I don’t have the belt anymore, I want to bring it back for my family. That’s my motivation,” he said.
“Fighting in his hometown in front of his family, his people, I feel like it’s a Rocky vs. Drago type of story. I’m going in there with a Rocky mentality and getting my belt back.”
Di Bella comes from world class kickboxing pedigree. The former strawweight kickboxing king is the son of former Kickboxing World Champion Angelo Di Bella.