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ONE strawweight kickboxing world champion Jonathan Di Bella recently spoke about the legend Nong-O Hama and his upcoming bout with fellow Thai star Kulabdam Sor Jor Piek Uthai. Di Bella will defend his belt against his division's Muay Thai world champion, Prajanchai PK Saenchai, in the co-main event of ONE Fight Night 58 on April 5.
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On the same card, Nong-O will have his comeback bout since suffering back-to-back KO losses last year. Across from the former world champion will be the surging Kulabdam, who is currently on a five-fight undefeated streak.
Expressing his concern for the living legend's chances against the younger Kulabdam, Jonathan Di Bella told the South China Morning Post on YouTube:
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“They’re putting Nong-O in tough fights. I like Nong-O but, [Kulabdam] is younger, he’s fresh, he looks like an animal. He’s looking good in there. He has good skill and is very sharp. I don’t want to go against Nong-O, but I don’t know [about his chances].”
Watch the full interview here:
Nong-O coming off two straight KO losses leading to ONE Friday Fights 58
Di Bella's concern for the Thai icon's future isn't completely unfounded, as his last two bouts were frightening KO losses to the promotion's top stars.
This is not saying, however, that the Thai legend doesn't have a tremendous chance of obliterating his opponent on fight night. His last loss, a second-round KO to Scotland's Nico Carrillo late last year, saw the Thai icon in prime form as he blasted the 'King of the North' with his signature leg kicks.
One can argue that if Carrillo hadn't been saved by the bell in the first round, the Thai legend would have won via TKO due to leg kicks. The courageous Scot came back in the second round to score a miraculous KO win.
Before the Carrillo loss, the former world champion dropped his belt to two-sport king Jonathan Haggerty after ruling the division with an iron fist for several years. Despite the frightening nature of his defeats in the last two bouts, we firmly believe that the Muay Thai legend isn't over the hill just yet, far from it.
There is still a lot of steam in the former Muay Thai kingpin's engine, and we'll get to see it run on April 5. ONE Friday Fights 58 is available free on ONE Championship’s digital platforms (ONE Championship’s YouTube channel, ONE Championship’s Facebook page, and watch.onefc.com).
