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Stamp Fairtex has opened up about her difficult decision to relinquish her ONE atomweight women's MMA world championship to interim queen Denice Zamboanga, revealing the personal and physical factors that led to this unfortunate move.
ONE Championship unveiled the news early last month, which elevated the Filipina MMA standout to the top of the atomweight division. Zamboanga finished Alyona Rassohyna in the second round of their interim world title tilt at ONE Fight Night 27 this past January, and she has been waiting for a chance to share the global stage with her former training partner in a world title unification matchup.
The fighting pride of Fairtex Training Center, who has been dealing with ongoing injury concerns that have forced her out of at least three fights over the past two years, admitted that she didn't want to hold up the entire division and would rather let her former training partner move on with her career until she's back at 100 percent.
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"In the beginning, it’s a bit sad to give my belt. But it’s really good as a friend to give my belt to her and she can fight with anyone, you know, because if I keep the belt she will always have to wait for me because she’s the interim champion and I’m the champion," Stamp told Nick Atkin during a recent interview.
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This selfless perspective from one of ONE Championship's biggest stars demonstrates the respect and friendship she holds for 'The Menace,' who spent the earlier parts of her career training alongside the three-sport queen at the world-renowned Fairtex in Pattaya, Thailand.
Stamp gearing up for inevitable return to the global stage of ONE Championship
While she's happy to watch from the sidelines and see what the future holds for the Zamboanga—the Philippines' first female MMA world champion—Stamp isn't slowing down in her pursuit to get back into action.
After a tough spell, which required surgery and countless rehabilitation sessions, the Thai is keeping her radar fully locked on a return date somewhere in Q4 of this year. Though she refuses to get ahead of herself, Stamp believes that when it's due time, she will return better than ever.
"I had to cancel my kickboxing [fight] in May because everything is not at 100 percent yet, and I’m scared that I’m gonna hurt it again. And I had to cancel with Denice because I still need a lot of time to train and do rehab. And right now, I’m still in rehab. So I do not have time to train 100 percent. So, I decided to just step down from being a champion," the 27-year-old continued.
"But I will stay patient so when I return I can be at 100 percent again. That's all. Right now, it's rehab before anything so I can make sure I heal fully."
Watch her full interview with Nick Atkin here:
Stamp was last in action during her ONE atomweight MMA world title win over Ham Seo Hee in the main event of ONE Fight Night 14 in September 2023. The striking specialist finished the South Korean veteran at the 1:06 mark of the third canto to attain three-sport glory in ONE Championship.
