ONE Strawweight Kickboxing World Champion Jonathan Di Bella put on a boxing masterclass in the first defense of his belt at ONE Fight Night 15: Le vs. Freymanov on Prime Video in U.S. primetime on Friday, October 6.
Di Bella lit up the durable “Mini T” Danial Williams for five rounds to score a unanimous decision win and retain his gold in the co-main event at Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand.
The unbeaten Italian-Canadian striker set the tone early by pushing “Mini T” to the ropes and even rocking him with a head kick. But his hands impressed the most in this fight, which was particularly evident in the ensuing rounds.
On the other side, Williams started aggressively in the second frame, but he simply had no answers for the reigning king’s boxing. Di Bella’s crisp jab and left straight were money all night long, tagging the Thai-Australian repeatedly while evading beautifully with masterful head movement.
If there was one aspect where Williams succeeded, it was with leg kicks, as the 30-year-old continuously targeted his opponent’s lead leg in the third round. Di Bella, though, incorporated a short right hook, and he finished the stanza strong by stringing together more combinations.
Entering the championship rounds, Williams needed something drastic to turn the tide, though Di Bella started off aggressively, continuing to tag the challenger with short right hooks. Williams did batter the World Champion’s leg once again, but while it showed visible damage, it did nothing to slow the Montreal native.
In the final frame, “Mini T” attempted to lure his foe into a war, but the 27-year-old Di Bella was disciplined enough to stay the course and pick him apart with more jabs, lightning-quick straights, and hooks.
After 25 minutes of action, it was clearly a win for Di Bella, who remained atop his throne and improved his professional kickboxing record to 12-0.
