Former champ Jonathan Di Bella admits Thai legend Sam-A Gaiyanghadao has always been “a dream fight” for him

Jonathan Di Bella is not only gunning for interim gold but also fulfilling a dream for his professional career.

Di Bella will face off against the iconic Sam-A Gaiyanghadao for the ONE interim strawweight kickboxing world title at the stacked ONE 172: Takeru vs. Rodtang card on March 23 at the historic Saitama Super Arena.

In an interview with the Story of the Fight podcast, Di Bella revealed that Sam-A has always been one of his favorite fighters, and taking on the multi-time world champion would be a dream come true for him.

Jonathan Di Bella said:

"The answer to [the] question, I got asked the other day, and I still didn't answer it. But right, you know, what a dream fight of mine is Sam-A. Sam-A is this dream fight of mine."

Di Bella, a former ONE strawweight kickboxing world champion, established himself as one of this generation's best kickboxers the moment he arrived in ONE Championship in October 2022.

In his promotional debut in Singapore, the Italian-Canadian slugger outclassed Chinese phenom Zhang Peimian for the vacant ONE strawweight kickboxing world title, the same gold Sam-A vacated due to retirement.

Di Bella defended his throne against Danial Williams in a proper barnburner in October 2023 in Bangkok.

His reign, however, came to a close when he was stripped of the gold after failing to make hydration for his supposed world title defense against strawweight Muay Thai king Prajanchai PK Saenchai in April 2024.

After falling short in reclaiming the strap against eventual holder Prajanchai in June 2024, Di Bella returned to the win column when he dominated Rui Botelho in December 2024.

Tickets of ONE 172 are available at EPlus, and the entire card will be streamed live at watch.onefc.com.

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Jonathan Di Bella says Sam-A will be his toughest test, yet

Jonathan Di Bella knows the threat Sam-A Gaiyanghadao holds heading into their potential slugfest in Japan.

In the same interview with Story of the Fight, Di Bella said he expects Sam-A's best version when they touch gloves inside one of the most hallowed stadiums in martial arts.

"You know, he's a legend, and now he's back again on a killing streak. And, yeah, it's even better fighting him. It turned out to be better," said Di Bella.

Sam-A is a former ONE flyweight Muay Thai, strawweight Muay Thai, and strawweight kickboxing world champion. He's coming off two straight wins against Akram Hamidi and Zhang.

Watch Di Bella's entire interview below: