Multi-discipline star Danial Williams is returning to his muay Thai roots to renew his push for a World Title in the sport.
The man known as “Mini T” will face Portuguese veteran Rui Botelho in a strawweight muay Thai contest at “ONE Fight Night 8: Bhullar vs. Malykhin” on March 24.
Williams had a busy 2022, as he competed in four MMA bouts and secured himself the No. 5 spot in ONE’s strawweight rankings. Despite earning a pair of highlight-reel knockouts and a dominant decision victory, the Aussie fell to surging Filipino contender Jeremy Miado in a catchweight battle to close the year on a sour note.
With that loss fresh in his mind, the 29-year-old says that he is doing his best to maintain his skills in all disciplines as he prepares to compete in muay Thai once again.
“There’s still massive holes in my game in MMA, especially after my last fight,” Williams said. “That’s on my mind every day. I don’t want to lose any improvement there, but I have to cut back quite a bit because it’s a muay Thai fight coming.
“So, it’s pretty hard. Don’t get me wrong: I’m super hard on the body and the mindset, but I think I’m finding the balance. I’m going to prove that in my next fight in Muay Thai.”
The Perth native also occupies the No. 5 spot in the promotion’s strawweight muay Thai division, and although he is moving back to “the art of eight limbs” for the foreseeable future, Williams is still working on his grappling at Scrappy MMA.
This year’s objective, however, is winning the ONE strawweight muay Thai world championship, which is currently held by Joseph Lasiri.
With a victory over Botelho, Williams believes he can make that dream a reality. Even so, he is keeping an open mind as to what his next move might be.
“I really want the muay Thai title shot. That’s my goal. I want to take this fight and, hopefully, get the title shot after this one. That’s my plan right now,” he said.
“But hey, if ONE chucks me into an MMA fight, (then I wouldn’t say no). I want that rematch with my last (opponent), so if that gets thrown at me, I’ll tell you in a heartbeat. It’s like keeping the door open for everything, but I really want the muay Thai title this year.”
Williams doesn’t plan to stop at two world titles, though.
The Aussie has been vocal about his wish to reign over an unprecedented three sports – MMA, muay Thai, and kickboxing.
ONE Championship is a unique organization in that it affords athletes the opportunity to do just that, and Williams plans to make the most of the variety on offer with the promotion – however difficult that may be.
“It’ll be crazy, but that’s why you got this platform in ONE. I love my martial arts. I want to make history. It has to be both. I think it’s really exciting. It makes life really interesting. It’s super challenging, and that’s what I like. It’s how I improve, not only in martial arts but also in life,” he said.
“I feel like it suits me because I guess I can get bored quite easily if I’m doing just one thing at a time. It’s cool that I can do both, and I think I can manage it well.”
