“I’ll just go with the flow” – Denice Zamboanga on chance to become first Filipina MMA world champion

Filipino atomweight fighter Denice Zamboanga is trying to stay level-headed ahead of arguably her biggest fight to date in her career later this year. She said it is for her to have a better understanding of what needs to be done to succeed.

‘The Menace’ will be finally getting a world title shot against reigning ONE atomweight MMA queen Stamp Fairtex at ONE 166: Qatar on March 1. It comes some five years since she set forth on her journey in ONE.

Speaking to The MMA Superfan, Zamboanga, 27, shared that while she is very excited about the great opportunity given to her, she is trying to strike a balance with her emotions so as not to be derailed by her world title goals. She said:

“It hasn’t really sunk in with me yet, but my teammates keep saying that if I win this match, I’ll be the first Filipina MMA world champion. I don’t really consider it as added pressure on my part. I’ll just go with the flow. I’ll follow my game plan and do what I have to do.I treat it as extra motivation for me to be at my best and hopefully, represent the Philippines and make my countrymen proud.”

Watch the interview below:

Denice Zamboanga has won back-to-back matches after hitting a rough patch. Her latest victory came in April last year over Brazilian Julie Mezabarba by unanimous decision.

She was previously in line to challenge former atomweight queen Angela Lee, but the match never happened. Lee is now retired.

Stamp, for her part, will be making her first defense of the world title she claimed in September last year by way of TKO over South Korean Ham Seo Hee.

ONE 166: Qatar is ONE Championship’s first-ever live on-ground event in the Middle Eastern country, happening at the Lusail Sports Arena in Lusail.

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Denice Zamboanga prepared for world title shot at ONE 166: Qatar

Long seeking to have a world title shot, Denice Zamboanga believes she is more than prepared to finally make a go at championship glory in her scheduled return later this year.

The 27-year-old Filipino fighter will battle world champion Stamp Fairtex for her ONE atomweight MMA world title at ONE 166: Qatar on March 1.

While it was a long time coming for her, Zamboanga believes the wait she had only served to prepare her for the big moment, and she is determined to succeed.

‘The Menace’ told Philstar.com in an interview:

“I feel that I have been prepared for this moment. I feel that this is God’s will, that the Lord has a purpose to delay my world title shot. I feel that this time, it is really mine.”

At ONE 166, Denice Zamboanga is facing off with Stamp, a friend and former teammate at Fairtex Gym, who is making her first defense of her world title.

Apart from the Stamp-Zamboanga title match, four other world title fights are on offer at ONE 166: Qatar, including the headlining middleweight MMA world title match between champion Reinier de Ridder and Anatoly Malykhin.