Bangkok’s Lumpinee Stadium has hosted plenty of five-round wars, but few carried the weight of unfinished business quite like this one.

Jonathan Di Bella defended his ONE Strawweight Kickboxing World Title against Zhang Peimian in the main event of The Inner Circle 22 on Friday, July 17, inside Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand.

The Canadian-Italian and the Chinese star first met nearly four years earlier for the vacant crown. Friday’s sequel picked up right where the original left off.

Di Bella and Zhang opened at a blistering pace. Both men traded crisp one-two combinations from the opening bell, with neither showing any hint of feeling the other out.

The pace held through round two. Di Bella worked his trademark hand combinations while Zhang answered with sharp counters and shots to the body.

Round three raised the stakes again. Both men mixed low kicks into their boxing, and Di Bella even landed a knee, only for Zhang to fire back a powerful right hook that briefly halted the champion’s momentum.

Zhang’s late surge tests Jonathan Di Bella

Jonathan Di Bella needed every bit of his championship experience once Zhang shifted gears in round four. The challenger unleashed a crescent kick to the midsection that visibly slowed the champion.

Di Bella stayed composed through the discomfort. He worked to locate openings in Zhang’s guard with clean boxing combinations as the round wore on.

The champion rallied in round five, landing sharp combinations while Zhang fired back until the final horn sounded. A late left hook counter from Di Bella jarred Zhang’s mouthguard loose during the frantic closing exchanges.

When the scorecards were tallied, Di Bella earned a unanimous decision that extended his championship reign. The result pushed his head-to-head record against Zhang to 2-0 across two five-round wars.

The Canadian-Italian’s overall mark improved to 16-1, closing the book on a rivalry nearly four years in the making.