“He always welcomes us with open arms” - Jonathan Di Bella says Superbon is an ‘awesome’ training partner

Jonathan Di Bella loves training with Thai legend Superbon.

On December 6, the former ONE strawweight kickboxing world champion returns to the legendary Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok for a showdown with streaking Portuguese standout Rui Botelho at ONE Fight Night 26 on Prime Video.

Ahead of their high-stakes clash, Di Bella spoke with Nick Atkins about his time training with another kickboxing legend anytime he's in Thailand.

"Yeah, man, he's cool," Di Bella said. "Superbon is an awesome guy. He always welcomes us with open arms. He always tells us to come whenever we're in town. Yeah, he's awesome."

After a stellar 2022 and 2023 that saw him earn wins over Zhang Peimian and Danial William on martial arts' biggest global stage, Di Bella saw some struggles in 2024, starting with a gaffe on the scale that cost him his ONE strawweight kickboxing crown. He then followed that up with a loss against two-sport king Prajanchai PK Saencahi in June.

Now, Di Bella is hoping to bag his first win of the year and get his 2025 off on the right foot.

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Jonathan Di Bella meets a new and improved version of Rui Botelho at ONE Fight Night 26

Getting a win at ONE Fight Night 26 will be no easy task for Jonathan Di Bella as he faces a fighter who's finally starting to hit his strike after a few rough years under the ONE Championship banner.

At one point, Rui Botelho lost six out of seven, including a couple of tough split decisions against Asashi Shinagawa and Aslanbek Zikreev.

Since then, Botelho has bounced back with a pair of stunning wins over the aforementioned Zhang Peimian and Thai prospect Thongpoon. If he can land another unlikely victory against Di Bella inside the Mecca of Muay Thai, he could find himself in line for a ONE world title opportunity.

Fans in the United States and Canada can watch ONE Fight Night 26 live on Amazon Prime Video on Friday, December 6 in U.S. primetime.