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Jonathan Di Bella has nothing but respect for striking icon Sam-A Gaiyanghadao. That said, the Canadian-Italian says his admiration for the Thai icon will have to be placed in the rear-view mirror when they lock horns in Saitama on March 23.
The Canadian-Italian's radar is locked on the ONE interim strawweight kickboxing world title when he takes to the circle against arguably the toughest test of his career at ONE 172 inside the Saitama Super Arena.
Besides a chance to book a ticket to a rematch against divisional king and two-sport ONE world champion Prajanchai PK Saenchai, Jonathan Di Bella admits he was buzzing with excitement when the offer to fight Sam-A arrived at his door.
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In an appearance on Story of the Fight recently, the Team Di Bella Kickboxing star said that while he's honored to have a chance to share the global stage with Sam-A, he cannot get carried away from the task at hand.
The 28-year-old said:
"As excited as I am to compete on this card against Sam-A...but, like, at the back of my mind, I'm still focused. I'm still...it's a regular fight, you know? And yeah, once we get in the ring, it's all business for sure."
The former ONE strawweight kickboxing world champion will be looking for his fourth victory under the ONE banner in Japan.
The Quebec native beat Zhang Peimian to claim the vacant crown in his debut at ONE 162 in October 2022. He added Portuguese star Rui Botelho and Australian-Thai firecracker Danial Williams to his list of victims since.
Prajanchai, meanwhile, handed him his first taste of defeat in their world title fight in the main event of ONE Friday Fights 68 last June.
Watch the full clip of the interview here:
Jonathan Di Bella lists Sam-A scrap as his "dream fight"
In the same appearance on Story of the Fight, Jonathan Di Bella revealed that it's always been his goal to share the Circle with the living legend since he joined the ONE Championship roster.
He shared:
"I'm feeling excited. You know, it's a dream fight of mine. To fight Sam A, [the] legend and I'm very excited to fight in Japan."
ONE 172: Takeru vs. Rodtang will be available live and for free at watch.onefc.com on Sunday, March 23.
