Jonathan Di Bella explains why he and his dad gym-hop a lot: “He makes me mix it up”

ONE strawweight kickboxing world champion Jonathan Di Bella wants to widen his know-how every time he trains, which is why he and his team try to move around gyms when possible.

The Canadian-Italian fighter shared this in an interview with ONE Championship in the lead-up to his first title defense at ONE Fight Night 15 on Prime Video on October 6 in Bangkok.

Jonathan Di Bella said that his father brought up the idea of training in various gyms to get a feel of different styles. It is a move that he said has paid dividends for them.

The 27-year-old world champion said:

“My dad calls his friends, and he always wants us to have different styles to spar against me. He doesn’t always want the same guys sparring with me. So he makes me mix it up, and we move around the gyms like that.”

At ONE Fight Night 15, Jonathan Di Bella will defend the world title he won in October last year in his promotional debut.

Out to make it a short reign for him is Australian-Thai fighter Danial Williams, who is making another go at a world kickboxing world title after his failed bid on the flyweight gold earlier this year.

Jonathan Di Bella is expecting nothing less but end-to-end action against Danial Williams, which is why he is leaving no stone unturned in his preparation.

In becoming a world champion, the Team Di Bella Kickboxing standout got the better of Chinese phenom Zhang Peimian in their clash for the inaugural ONE strawweight kickboxing title. He won by unanimous decision.

Danial Williams, for his part, fell short in his quest for the flyweight kickboxing world title in March, knocked out by reigning champion Superlek Kiatmoo9 in the third round. He, however, was a replacement opponent for the said fight.

Now with more time to prepare and sharpen his kickboxing skills and the fight under the weight class he is comfortable in, ‘Mini T’ said he is confident of having a better showing against Di Bella and getting the win.

ONE Fight Night 15 is happening at the Lumpinee Boxing Stadium and is available live and for free to Prime Video subscribers in North America.