Jonathan Di Bella suffered a setback, losing the ONE Strawweight Kickboxing World Title to Prajanchai PK Saenchai at ONE Friday Fights 68. Now, the ONE Championship athlete is driven to get the title back. The road back to the top begins against Rui Botelho at ONE Fight Night 26 on Friday, December 6.
“My goal is to get my belt back – for sure, 100 percent to get my belt back. That’s my main goal,” Di Bella told ONE.
The title tilt went down to the wire, but Di Bella came out on the losing end. While he could offer reasons as to why the decision did not go his way, that is not the style of the Italian-Canadian athlete. Instead, he is only focused on the future.
“It was a close fight. I still lost, still came out on the short end. I just want to get the belt back, that’s all. I want to be champion. I like being champion. I love being champion, and yeah, I just want to be champion again,” Di Bella stated.
While Di Bella is steadfast in his drive to get the title back, he is not overlooking his next opponent. The talented strawweight knows he cannot take anything for granted. Di Bella plans to be the best version of himself and give everything he has at ONE Fight Night 26.
“I believe I gotta get a win. Don’t look for any knockouts. Just go out there and perform, focus on Rui, and then whatever is next, is next. If Prajanchai is next, we’ll focus on Prajanchai for sure. But yeah, my main focus is Rui,” the former ONE Strawweight Kickboxing World Champion replied.
Botelho is not a stepping stone for anyone. The Portuguese striker has back-to-back wins over standout strikers Zhang Peimian and Thongpoon PK Saenchai. Di Bella pointed out that his next opponent is strong in all areas, meaning a victory is not a given.
Going for GOLD 🏆 Former ONE Strawweight Kickboxing World Champion Jonathan Di Bella's road back to the belt runs through upset specialist Rui Botelho on December 6 at ONE Fight Night 26 on @primevideo! Who stakes their claim for a shot at Prajanchai? @jondibella… pic.twitter.com/8TEQuUe8SC
— ONE Championship (@ONEChampionship) November 1, 2024
“[Botelho is a] very unorthodox fighter. I think he has a lot of power, a lot of speed, a lot of timing. He’s very tricky, and as far as weaknesses, I don’t see really many weaknesses, but I see that he’s very offensive. He’s more offensive than anything. He comes to fight, so that’s good,” Di Bella said.
In an effort to claim a title shot, many athletes would focus on a finish. However, Di Bella will not force anything against Botelho in Bangkok, Thailand. The former titleholder quite simply wants to get his hand raised, and a win will help reestablish himself as one of the top contenders for the gold.
“Whatever I have to do to win, I’ll do. I’ll see his style in the fight, during the fight, and whatever happens, happens. Maybe win by decision, win by knockout. I’m not going to look for a knockout, but anything can happen. If it comes, it comes. But it’s just to win, you know? I just play to win,” Di Bella stated.
ONE Fight Night 26 airs live on Prime Video on Friday, December 6. The action begins at 8 p.m. EST/5 p.m. PST. The event is free for all Amazon Prime subscribers based in the U.S. and Canada.
