“I push myself even more” - Denice Zamboanga says she uses her harsh training camps as fuel to fire herself up during fights

Denice Zamboanga admitted that she has an interesting relationship with the bumps and bruises she suffers in training camp.

The ONE interim women's atomweight MMA world champion said she'll exhaust herself to her maximum limit during training camp, and channel the suffering she went through to reach her peak form when she steps inside the cage.

In an interview with Atleta Filipina, Zamboanga said:

"Actually, every time I get hurt in training, I push myself even more. That’s kind of my motivation moving forward."

Denice Zamboanga's attitude towards her training camp ultimately makes its way during her fights, where she picks her opponents apart with a hard-nosed grappling-based offense that's rarely seen among Filipino fighters.

'The Menace' will grind her opponents down with overwhelming wrestling or use her dirty boxing to throw them off their rhythm on the feet.

That style was in full show when she faced off against Alyona Rassohyna for the ONE interim women's atomweight MMA world title at ONE Fight Night 27 in January this year.

Zamboanga was on a mission against Rassohyna in Bangkok, imposing her will with a suffocating boxing game that shook the Ukrainian star on the feet.

Despite Rassohyna's perceived advantage on the ground, Zamboanga was persistent on the mat and dictated every wrestling exchange during their matchup.

Zamboanga's staggering offensive pressure reached a fever pitch when she had Rassohyna cornered before raining down hellish ground-and-pound for the second-round TKO win.

The Filipino star now embarks on the biggest fight of her career when she faces ONE women's atomweight MMA world champion Stamp Fairtex in a world title unification match.

The matchup between the two close friends for the undisputed ONE women's atomweight MMA world champion transpires at ONE 173: Denver on Aug. 1 at Ball Arena.

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Denice Zamboanga recalls the early sacrifices she had to endure at the start of her career

Denice Zamboanga's road to world title glory was far from a smooth journey.

The ONE interim women's atomweight MMA world champion said in the same interview with Atleta Filipina that she struggled with bouts of homesickness when she started living and training in Thailand:

"There are a lot of challenges, of course. My first few fights, because I trained in Thailand and away from home without my family, I kept telling myself that I had to endure the sacrifice of being away from them so that I can really develop my skills as a fighter."

Watch Zamboanga's entire interview below: