ONE Fight Night 15: Three Keys To Victory For Jonathan Di Bella

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Jonathan Di Bella's reign as the ONE Strawweight Kickboxing World Champion could start soon. The Canadian-Italian striker makes the first defense of his kickboxing crown this weekend, and his first challenger will be no easy opponent.

Di Bella meets former ONE Flyweight Kickboxing World Title challenger Danial Williams in the co-main of ONE Fight Night 15: Le vs. Freymanov this Saturday, 7 October, from Bangkok, Thailand's famed Lumpinee Boxing Stadium.

The supreme striker returns to action for the first time since winning the vacant belt last year, and Williams will provide a stern test for him. With that, let's look at three keys to victory for Di Bella.

1. Utilize Reach Advantage To Keep Williams At Bay: What makes Di Bella great is his long and lanky stature. Coming in at 5 foot 9 inches, he's reached an exceptional height for a strawweight kickboxer. And he's already managed to put it to good use to win the division's vacant kickboxing World Title.

His opponent, Williams, is only 5 foot 6 inches. So Di Bella should plan to put his long limbs to work. Sharp, straight shots such as jabs and front kicks will help him lay a strong foundation to overcome his shorter adversary and keep him at bay.

2. Set Up Combinations With Leg Kicks: En route to becoming a champ, Di Bella showcased his powerful combinations, and plenty of those started with leg kicks. But many of his combinations also end with leg kicks. It's an unorthodox tool that throws his opponents off balance and keeps them guessing.

Against an aggressive opponent like Williams, these combinations will come in handy. Especially the kicks. "Mini T" fell victim to the slamming kicks of ONE Flyweight Kickboxing World Champion Superlek Kiatmoo9 this past March at ONE Fight Night 8.

Chopping the legs worked wonders for Superlek, so Di Bella should follow suit to slow down the movement of the Thai-Australian combatant when they meet in the middle of Lumpinee Stadium.

3. Keep A Fast And Frantic Pace: When Di Bella came up against Zhang Peimian at ONE 162 last year, the pair immediately stood toe-to-toe in the center of the Circle. The pace was intense and neither man wanted to take a back step.

However, the future divisional king's technical skills let him control the space and put the Chinese phenom on the back foot. In other words, Di Bella's intelligent striking allowed him to shut down Zhang's challenges.

If he can control the pace of the fight against Williams, he'll be able to fluster "Mini T's" attacks and walk away with the gold remaining firmly around his waist.