"It means a lot to me" - Jonathan Di Bella believes victory over Prajanchai will elevate his star status
Jonathan Di Bella believes that with a win at ONE Friday Fights 58, he can take his career to a whole new level.
The ONE strawweight kickboxing world champion has proven himself to be a world class talent, but if there's maybe one knock against his career to date, it's that he is yet to face some of the major names in his weight class.
This certainly won't be the case at ONE Friday Fights 58, where he looks to defend his title against strawweight Muay Thai king Prajanchai PK Saenchai.
The division's two striking world champions will go head to head on April 5 inside the iconic Lumpinee Boxing Stadium where a win may go down as Di Bella's crowning achievement.
He told ONE Championship that this fight means more to him that just racking up another title defense and believes that he could use this fight to raise the bar:
"Beating a name like him, it means a lot. It means a lot for me. And it means a lot for all the viewers because if I beat another champion, it's very important for my name and my recognition."
Jonathan Di Bella knows he is in for a tough fight
Jonathan Di Bella is right to put those kind of extra stakes on his return at ONE Friday Fights 58 given the opponent he is facing.
Prajanchai may have only reclaimed the strawweight crown in December last year following a shock defeat to Joseph Lasiri but he has been one of the best in the world for some time now.
A Muay Thai legend in his own right, he can write himself into the history books on April 5 by becoming a two-sport world champion at strawweight.
For Jonathan Di Bella to stop that from happening, he will need to prove that he can produce the same level of performance that we have seen from him in the past against one of the world's best.
ONE Friday Fights 58 will air live in Asia primetime on April 5.