"I just want my belt back" - Jonathan Di Bella slams Prajanchai's alleged goal of two-weight supremacy
Jonathan Di Bella wants to reclaim his throne if the current king does not want to rule over the division.
The former ONE Strawweight Kickboxing World Champion called out reigning king Prajanchai PK Saenchai to either vacate the belt or defend it against him at ONE 169: Atlanta, scheduled for Friday, November 8, on U.S. primetime.
Di Bella was stripped of his belt earlier this year when he failed to make weight and hydration for his initially scheduled fight against the Thai star at ONE Friday Fights 58 last April. The pair would finally lock horns two months later at ONE Friday Fights 58, where the PK Saenchai Muaythai Gym standout took the vacant strap with a tight unanimous decision victory.
In an interview with Nic Atkin of Bangkok Post, Di Bella claimed that Prajanchai is looking to challenge for belts at the flyweight division, and he doesn't appreciate him taking the strawweight belt with him.
"Prajanchai wants to go up. I should fight for the vacant title or an interim belt in Atlanta. If he stays at 125, let's do the re-match at ONE 169. I just want my belt back."
Di Bella and Prajanchai went toe to toe against each other in their initial meeting, with some fans on social media saying the Italian-Canadian striker was "robbed" by the judges.
The 28-year-old is eager to get back to action and is targeting a fight in November. Unfortunately, he was told that the two-sport champ was planning on moving up to flyweight.
"I don't know why he wants to move up. I would rather do the rematch. But good for him."
Jonathan Di Bella is hoping for more gold on the line at ONE 169: Atlanta
Jonathan Di Bella is hungry to fight for ONE gold once again, and he's looking to be featured closer to home.
Through three fights in the world's largest martial arts organization, the Montreal native has traveled halfway across the world in Bangkok or Malaysia to showcase his skills in ONE.
After ONE Championship's return to the United States earlier this month at ONE 168: Denver, the organization will once again be in North America for ONE 169: Atlanta.
Currently, there are already four World Title bouts scheduled for the card, including three-division ONE World Champion Anatoly Malykhin's defense of his heavyweight strap. Adding another fight for ONE gold involving Di Bella could make the stacked card bigger than it already is.