"The brutal side of the fight business" - Zhang Peimian opens up on Jonathan Di Bella's last-second pull-out vs Prajanchai
Former ONE strawweight kickboxing world title challenger Zhang Peimian shared his sympathy for his former adversary Jonathan Di Bella.
The undefeated Canadian-Italian striker, after all, was supposed to defend his world title against fellow champion Prajanchai PK Saenchai at ONE Friday Fights 58 last April 5.
Unfortunately, disaster struck at the last minute. Di Bella fell ill on the day of the weigh-ins and ultimately lost the belt on the scales after failing his hydration.
The bout was still expected to push through until Di Bella was admitted to the hospital, and the fight was eventually scrapped altogether.
While Zhang feels bad for his former competitor, he also understands that the show must go on. 'Fighting Rooster' told Nic Atkin of Sportskeeda MMA:
"This is the brutal side of the fight business. So whether you are sick or injured, you have to make weight in order to compete. But I also want to wish him a good and timely recovery. But that's just the reality of it."
Watch the full interview below:
For now, the strawweight kickboxing world championship remains vacant, which somehow opens the doors for Zhang Peimian. Let's see if he can get a rematch with Di Bella or perhaps even duel Tawanchai for 26 pounds of gold.
Zhang Peimian believes he deserves a shot for the vacant belt
Following a disappointing split decision setback against Rui Botelho last year, Zhang Peimian returned to the winning column with a dominant victory over Aliff Sor Dechapan at ONE Friday Fights 58.
In the same interview, the Chinese star revealed he has no interest in running it back with Botelho. Instead, he made it clear that his sights are exclusively on the strawweight kickboxing crown.
'Fighting Rooster' added:
"I don't think it's necessary to fight Botelho again because I definitely won that fight. But for my next fight, my only target is the vacant title."