Zhang Peimian wasn’t surprised to see reigning ONE strawweight kickboxing world champion, Jonathan Di Bella, decisively retain his title at ONE Fight Night 15 in October.
Di Bella, who defeated Zhang to claim the division’s kickboxing crown with a unanimous decision victory in October 2022, put the belt on the line for the very first time last month in an entertaining scrap with well-rounded martial artist Danial Williams.
Sharing his thoughts on Di Bella’s performance, Zhang Peimian believes the Canadian-Italian titleholder did everything he needed to come out on top.
“I wasn’t surprised by that fight [Danial Williams vs. Jonathan Di Bella],” Peimian told the South China Morning Post. “Di Bella did very good in the first three rounds and I think he lost the last two rounds.”
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Hoping to climb his way back to a title opportunity against Jonathan Di Bella, Zhang Peimian returned to the iconic Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand, at ONE Fight Night 16 for a showdown with Portuguese striking sensation Rui Botelho.
Zhang entered the bout as a significant favorite, but it was Botelho who would see his hand raised by way of a razor-thin split decision.
Having lost two of his last three, Permian has some work to do if he hopes to get back into the strawweight kickboxing title picture. But at only 20 years old, the ‘Fighting Rooster’ has plenty of time to bounce back and earn another shot at ONE Championship gold.
Rui Botelho’s victory over Zhang Peimian was his second under the discipline after his victory over Yutu Watanabe. Could a title opportunity be in his future or does Botelho still have some work to do?
If you missed any of the action or want to relive an epic night in ONE Championship history, the ONE Fight Night 16: Haggerty vs. Andrade replay can be watched anytime on demand via Amazon Prime Video in North America.