“He gave me a choice” – Jonathan Di Bella says kickboxing dad didn’t force him into a career in martial arts

For Jonathan Di Bella, securing the ONE strawweight kickboxing world championship with his dad in his corner was a moment he will never forget.

The 27-year-old has been in and around the sport of kickboxing since he was just two years old thanks to the gym that his family ran, which saw his dad become a two-time world champion.

While that could have put a lot of pressure on Di Bella to live up to the expectations of his family and father, he says that this wasn’t necessarily the case.

In fact, he says that his father would have rather he never pursued this career path having walked down it himself.

Jonathan Di Bella told Ariel Helwani on The MMA Hour that his dedication to training was just a result of repetition and lineage:

“No, he gave me a choice, like he didn't force me into it, like I think he preferred me not fighting, but yeah it's in the blood. But like all day like after school I was headed straight to the gym and ended up just like always training and ended up yeah being a champion.”

Watch the full interview below:

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Jonathan Di Bella’s dedication is a constant fixture inside the Circle

You could only expect the level of perfection in striking that Jonathan Di Bella brings to the table from someone who has lived and breathed their chosen discipline at such a young age.

The slickness of everything that the ONE strawweight kickboxing world champion does on fight night can only come from dedication and discipline when it comes to learning your craft.

Both of these things have paid dividends for him during his ONE Championship run which saw him become a world champion on his debut.

His first title defense against Danial Williams at ONE Fight Night 15 was yet another showcase of just how good he can be when he’s in his element.

North American viewers with an active Amazon Prime Video subscription can rewatch all the action from ONE Fight Night 15 via the free event replay.