Second-ranked ONE Championship women's atomweight MMA contender and ONE world title challenger 'The Menace' Denice Zamboanga of the Philippines has been hard at work, perfecting her craft, even during her injury absence.
And the Quezon City resident says, this extra time has allowed her to take her ground game to the next level.
Speaking to YouTube channel, The MMA Superfan, in a recent interview, Zamboanga says she hasn't been merely sitting on her laurels while recovering from injury. She has been sharpening the tools in the shed.
'The Menace' said:
"Maybe I wasn’t really prepared before, or my striking wasn’t on point, or my knowledge wasn’t so strong. Because when I was just starting, my skills weren’t that solid. My brother and [my fiance] Fritz [Biagtan] had to sharpen my striking skills. My jiu-jitsu now is so different."
Zamboanga was initially due for a world title shot earlier this year against Ukraine's Alyona Rassohyna, but an injury forced her to postpone this matchup. It was yet another bump in the road for the Filipina star's world title dreams, but she was confident her opportunity to make history was still on the table.
Fast forward to months later, and Zamboanga is now fully recovered and ready to claim her spot in history.
Denice Zamboanga gets world title shot against Alyona Rassohyna at ONE Fight Night 27 on Prime Video
No.2-ranked contender 'The Menace' Denice Zamboanga is set to do battle with No.4-ranked Alyona Rassohyna for the ONE interim women's atomweight MMA world title.
The two lock horns in the co-main event of ONE Fight Night 27: Tang vs. Abdullaev on Prime Video, which broadcasts live in U.S. primetime on Friday, January 10, from the historic Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand.
Fans in the United States and Canada can catch all the action live and free with an active Amazon Prime Video subscription.
Stay tuned to Sportskeeda MMA for all the latest news and updates surrounding the event as it happens.