The Filipino-born fighter Denice Zamboanga will get a chance to capture the world title against Stamp Fairtex, a former teammate and training partner. These two will square off on ONE 167 at Bangkok’s Impact Arena on Jun. 8 for the ONE women’s atomweight world championship.
Stamp Fairtex captured the atomweight throne by stopping the veteran MMA fighter Ham Seo-hee by TKO in 2023. The Thai-born athlete will look to have her first world title defense against “The Mance” Zamboanga. Stamp and the Filipina once trained alongside one another. But for Zamboanga, it makes no difference. For her, it’s business as usual.
In an interview with The MMA Superfan, Zamboanga explained:
“It doesn’t matter who the champion is, be it her or someone else, my mindset going into the fight will always be that way. This is going to be all business for me… Back in training, we do it seriously, so imagine when we’re fighting for the belt. I think that friendship will have to be set aside and, after the match, we’re back to normal.”
The 27-year-old athlete earned her shot at the throne by putting together wins against Brazil’s Julie Mezabarba and Heqin Lin, of China. But, her fight against the world champion was delayed. Again, Zamboanga was comfortable with this. She continued:
“I believe it’s God’s will that my title shot got a bit delayed. I believe there’s a reason why that happened. I believe this is the perfect time for me to get this opportunity and become champion. I feel like ONE really prepared me for this moment and it’s finally here.“
The two fighters are very familiar with each other’s game. And on what Stamp will bring to defend her world title, “The Menace” said:
“I think she’ll continue working on her grappling against me. But also, her Muay Thai and striking game has also leveled up. Her wins have come by finishes, so I think her grappling and striking have improved a lot.”
Denice Zamboanga will face Stamp Fairtex and look to capture the ONE atomweight throne. This fight will be hosted in the main event of ONE 167 on Jun. 8. The co-main event will see Tawanchai PK Saenchai defend his featherweight Muay Thai world title against “Smokin'” Jo Nattawut.