The recent ONE Lumpinee tentpole show went down at a sold-out Impact Arena in Bangkok, mained by ONE Strawweight Muay Thai Champion Prajanchai facing off against former ONE Strawweight Kickboxing Champion Jonathan Di Bella, who lost his title on the scale two months ago. Though undefeated, and despite the fight being Prajanchai's second in kickboxing, the Italian-Canadian fighter was a sizable underdog as he was largely untested against international talent outside of ONE Championship's young Strawweight division.
In the fight, Di Bella took the early rounds with clean and fast boxing combinations while Prajanchai took the championship rounds with his kicks and knees, with the third round being the most tightly contested of the fight. The scorecards disagreed, however, with two judges giving Prajanchai four rounds and all three giving the fight to the now-two-sport Champion.
After the show, ONE CEO Chatri Sityodtong publicly stated that he disagreed with the decision, so there likely will be a rematch in the near future. Whatever the case, Jonathan Di Bella proved himself to be a top-level fighter with a bright future in the sport.
Petchtanong makes his return to Kickboxing
In July 2023, it was announced that then-ONE Bantamweight Kickboxing Champion Petchtanong tested positive for the steroids metenolone and noldenone. He was subsequently stripped of his title and banned from competition for one year. Last Friday, he faced former ONE Kickboxing Champion Aleverdi Ramazanov. Though he looked rusty in the first round, Petchtanong turned up the pressure in the second, knocked Ramazanov down, and made him quit. An impressive comeback for the 38-year-old.
Kaito Sakaguchi impresses in his ONE debut
Former RISE and Shootboxing title challenger Kaito Sakaguchi made his ONE debut on one of the biggest ONE Friday Fights cards of the year. He faced former Akihiro Kaneko opponent Lan Shanteng. As usual, Shanteng was tough as nails, but he was little more than a punching bag after the first round. The Japanese kickboxer won a comfortable decision and will be a good addition to ONE's Strawweight division.
ONE Friday Fights 68
Prajanchai def. Jonathan Di Bella β Unanimous Decision β ONE Strawweight Kickboxing World Title
Superlek def. Kongthoranee Sor Sommai β Unanimous Decision
Kiamran Nabati def. Suablack Tor Pran49 β KO at 1:54 of R1
Petchtanong def. Alaverdi Ramazanov β TKO at 1:59 of R2
Shadow def. Jimmy Vienot β Unanimous Decision
Pakorn def. Rafi Bohic β KO at 2:15 of R1
Tyson Harrison def. Sibmuen β Split Decision
Yodlekpet def. Komawut β Unanimous Decision
Suriyanlek def. Pompet β KO at 2:50 of R1
Kaito Sakaguchi def. Lan β Unanimous Decision
Kohei Wakabayashi def. Sanlang Gexi β Split Decision
Ryota Hashimoto def. Yuto Ueno β KO at 2:05 of R1
