“The wait will build even more excitement” - Denice Zamboanga hopeful long-awaited fight with Stamp will still materialize 

Undisputed ONE atomweight MMA world champion Denice Zamboanga believes she will still share the Circle with Stamp Fairtex one day.

The long-awaited showdown between these two former training partners was supposed to go down at ONE 173: Denver in August, but the injury bug put a wrench in those plans.

Stamp faced a setback in her surgically repaired right knee, which put the supposed world title unification battle on hold. The Thai superstar also relinquished her 26 pounds of gold, while ONE's US return has also been postponed to next year.

After being elevated to undisputed status, Zamboanga is ready to fulfill her responsibilities and defend the belt against other challengers. Still, the Filipina fan-favorite hopes Stamp will reach full recovery soon and they can revisit their match.

'The Menace' shared in a ONE Championship interview:

“I think the wait will build even more excitement and hype for this fight [with Stamp]. People have been wanting to see this match for a long time.”

To be fair, the friends-turned-rivals storyline between Denice Zamboanga and Stamp Fairtex makes this epic pairing extremely intriguing. Plus, these two fierce warriors are indeed at the top of the food chain in the women's 115-pound division.

---

Denice Zamboanga thinks Ayaka Miura is the next deserving contender

With Stamp on the mend, Denice Zamboanga will now prepare for other usurpers seeking to cut her reign short.

As far as the TREX MMA affiliate is concerned, there's one surging atomweight contender that truly earned a shot at 26 pounds of gold. In an interview with the Bangkok Post, Zamboanga talked about the possibility of fighting Ayaka 'Zombie' Miura:

"Since she's very active, I think that's one of her advantages. For me, it's a challenge because we are both good at grappling, but at the same time, she knows how to handle a fighter like me, so I think it will be a big challenge for me."