Danial Williams says Jonathan Di Bella would have lost to Zhang Peimian if not for late head kick knockdown 

Knockout artist Danial Williams knows that a single strike can alter the trajectory of an entire fight, or in this case, an entire division. So much so, that he believes that ONE would have a different strawweight kickboxing world champion if not for a last-minute knockdown.

‘Mini T’ recently reviewed the promotional debut of his upcoming opponent, Jonathan Di Bella. The pair of hard-hitting strawweights will trade leather at ONE Fight Night 15: Tawanchai vs. Superbon on Prime Video on October 6 at Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand.

Jonathan Di Bella was crowned the division’s top dog at ONE 162 last year when he outlasted Zhang Peimian in a classic five-round war. It was anybody’s ball game heading into the fifth and final round since both world-class strikers had their moments.

In Williams’ eyes, however, the Chinese prodigy’s forward pressure and insanely fast combinations were actually winning him the fight.

With less than a minute to go, Di Bella turned the tide with one pin-point left head kick that sent ‘The Fighting Rooster’ to the mat.

Zhang eventually survived the standing count and was able to reach the final bell. However, the knockdown hurt his case, and it was Di Bella who walked away with the unanimous decision victory and 26 pounds of gold.

Had he weathered that strike, Williams believes Zhang would have been the champion and his opponent next month.

The Australian-Thai slugger told ONE Championship in an exclusive interview:

“I feel like [Di Bella] got bumped up to fight for the title straight away, so I don’t feel like he’s fought the experienced guys here. Zhang Peimian is probably the most experienced guy, I feel like, and yeah, that was a close fight. Very close. Head kick. If you didn’t get the head kick, I think they’d have given it to ZPM.”

ONE Fight Night 15 will broadcast live in US primetime free of charge for Prime Video subscribers in the United States and Canada.