Denice Zamboanga has dreamed of this second for years. On August 1, at ONE 173: Denver, she is going to step into the cage in opposition to her former teammate and reigning ONE Ladies’s Atomweight MMA World Champion, Stamp Fairtex, in a high-stakes unification bout.
Denice Zamboanga vs. Stamp Fairtex
The 2 used to coach collectively in Thailand, forging a bond by means of numerous hours of sparring and preparation. However when the cage door closes at Ball Enviornment, their friendship will take a backseat to enterprise.
“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,” Denice Zamboanga mentioned chatting with The MMA Superfan, “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.”
Now, after years of grinding by means of the ranks, she’s lastly getting her shot on the undisputed title. “Yeah, of course, because we’re fighting for a belt. We’re talking about the dream. Just hearing those words, it’s really like—I just can’t believe this is happening, you know? I’ve been waiting for this opportunity for a long time, and now it’s here.”
Zamboanga enters the struggle on a four-fight profitable streak, capped by a second-round stoppage of Alyona Rassohyna, the primary lady to defeat Stamp in MMA. That win earned her the interim title and solidified her declare because the rightful challenger for the undisputed crown.
In the meantime, Stamp has been sidelined since profitable the atomweight title in opposition to Ham Search engine marketing Hee because of a knee harm. Now absolutely recovered, the charismatic Thai famous person is able to defend her throne in opposition to a well-known foe. ONE 173: Denver marks ONE Championship’s return to North America. For Denice Zamboanga, it’s an opportunity to satisfy a lifelong dream—even when it means placing friendship on maintain for one night time.
