Denice Zamboanga will finally get her shot at 26 pounds of gold.
“The Menace” is slated to battle Alyona Rassohyna for the interim atomweight MMA world championship in the co-main event of ONE Fight Night 25, set for October 5 at the legendary Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand.
For Zamboanga (11-2), this moment has been a long time coming.
The 27-year-old Quezon City resident has been on a relentless quest for a world title opportunity since her impressive upset victory over Mei Yamaguchi in February 2020.
Promised a crack at the coveted belt following that win, she faced several detours on her path.
After her high-profile win, Zamboanga encountered several setbacks – notably back-to-back losses to Ham Seo Hee that seemed to derail her championship aspirations.
But true to her resilient spirit, she clawed her way back into contention with impressive wins over Lin Heqin and Julie Mezabarba.
Originally, Zamboanga was slated to challenge Stamp Fairtex for the divisional crown at ONE 166 in Qatar this past March.
The bout was rescheduled to ONE 167 in June, only for it to be thrown into disarray when the Thai superstar suffered a torn meniscus just two weeks before the encounter.
(C) ONE
This twist in the tale placed the No. 2-ranked contender in a high-risk, low-reward clash opposite replacement opponent Noelle Grandjean.
There, she didn’t disappoint and seized the moment, delivering a dominant performance that earned her a unanimous decision and kept her pole position in the title race.
With Stamp still recovering from her injury, the promotion has decided to crown an interim titleholder, providing Zamboanga with the chance to make history as the first Filipina to capture a major accolade in the all-encompassing sport.
It won’t be a walk in the park for Zamboanga, as she faces a formidable foe in Rassohyna.
Rassohyna first made headlines with her stunning submission victory over Stamp via guillotine choke in her January 2021 promotional debut.
Unfortunately for the Ukrainian, she failed to capitalize on the momentum. Stamp exacted revenge in the quarterfinals of the 2021 ONE Atomweight MMA World Grand Prix eight months later.
Since then, Rassohyna hasn’t reported for duty. In her return against Zamboanga, she brings her more experienced record of 13-5, with 11 victories by submission.
