ONE Championship: Jonathan Di Bella wants Takeru fight after kickboxing masterclass
- Di Bella defends strawweight belt with impressive decision win over Danial Williams at ONE Fight Night 15 in Bangkok
- Champion has options for his next fight, including the Japanese superstar Takeru and Chinese contender Zhang Peimian
ONE Championship strawweight kickboxing king Jonathan Di Bella insisted he is open to a blockbuster bout with Takeru Segawa, as long as the Japanese superstar is willing to meet him at a catchweight.
The 27-year-old earned a clean sweep from the judges at ringside, picking up scores of 50-45 on all three of their cards, as he dominated all five rounds at Lumpinee Stadium.
Di Bella, 27, has options after his impressive performance, but none would generate as much buzz as a showdown with Takeru, who is considered one of the top pound-for-pound kickboxers in the world, and one of the sport’s biggest stars.
“I would fight anybody close to my weight,” he said when asked about a clash with the larger Takeru, who typically fights around 132lbs. “If he can make 125lbs, or we could do a catchweight at 130, for sure.”
There would be no bad blood between the two kickboxing talents if they met in the ring – rhe pair briefly trained together in Santa Monica, and got in a few rounds of sparring.
“He’s very cool,” Di Bella said. “We did a light sparring. We still landed some shots, because light sparring with Takeru doesn’t exist.
“He’s very quick. He’s good.”
Takeru is not Di Bella’s only option.
There are a number of contenders eyeing his belt at 125lbs, most notably China’s Zhang Peimian, whom Di Bella defeated with a competitive decision to win the title one year ago.
Di Bella has welcomed a rematch with the Chinese star since their first fight ended, and his tune has not changed after his impressive win over Williams.
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His top priority, however, is fighting a bit closer to his home in Montreal, as part of ONE’s continued expansion into the United States.
“For sure,” he said regarding a rematch with Zhang. “I am open to fight anybody and hopefully I get to fight on the US shows. That’s what I want next.”
While Di Bella seemed to hit a new level in his fight with Williams, particularly in terms of his boxing, he was quite critical of his performance after the fact.
The champion said he struggled to find his timing in the ring.
“I believe I won all rounds,” he said. “My performance could have been better. It wasn’t the way I wanted, but I got the W.
“My timing was a little bit off, but there’s always room for improvement, and I can’t wait to get back.”
The champion, who has proven himself as a true sportsman, also took a moment to acknowledge his opponent’s toughness.
“He’s very tough,” Di Bella said of Williams. “I knew coming into the fight he was not going to be an easy opponent, he’s going to be there all five rounds, and I knew that already. He showed it.”
