Stamp Fairtex Makes First Women’s Atomweight MMA World Title Defense Against Denice Zamboanga At ONE 166: Qatar
Stamp Fairtex will defend her ONE Women’s Atomweight MMA World Title for the first time at ONE Championship’s historic on-ground debut in Qatar.
The Thai megastar is set to battle her friend and former teammate Denice “The Menace” Zamboanga at ONE 166: Qatar, which takes place at Lusail Sports Arena on Friday, March 1.
Stamp won the coveted gold at ONE Fight Night 14 last September, where she defeated “Hamzzang” Ham Seo Hee in impressive fashion to claim the crown that had been vacated by longtime atomweight MMA queen “Unstoppable” Angela Lee.
The 26-year-old sensation finished the teak-tough contender via TKO in the third round. By doing so, Stamp – who previously held the division’s Muay Thai and kickboxing belts – became the first-ever three-sport ONE World Champion.
Already a global fan favorite, that historic victory propelled the Pattaya native’s popularity even higher, and fans can’t get enough of her exciting fighting style and loveable personality.
On March 1, she’ll make her first ONE Women’s Atomweight MMA World Title defense, and it will be against an opponent who knows her game like no other.
Zamboanga practiced her craft alongside Stamp every day at the Fairtex Training Center in Pattaya back in 2019 and 2020, and the pair rose through the ranks together. During that time, “The Menace” made her promotional debut and rattled off three wins to become one of the division’s most talented rising stars.
Though she dropped a pair of consecutive decisions to Ham, the Filipina regained some of her early momentum with back-to-back victories. In the process, she solidified her status in the weight class.
Now standing at #2 in the women’s atomweight MMA rankings, Zamboanga’s well-rounded skill set and intimate knowledge of Stamp’s repertoire make this battle particularly interesting.
The pair were more than just training partners, however. In fact, the two could be frequently seen together when the sessions were over.
Whether it was filming the latest dance crazes or just hanging out, Stamp and Zamboanga were close friends. But now, they’ll have to push their friendship to the side as they prepare to duke it out for the World Championship at Qatar’s Lusail Sports Arena.
There’ll be no room for sentimentality when the first bell rings, as Stamp aims to keep hold of her ONE Women’s Atomweight MMA World Title and Zamboanga tries to pry it from her grasp.
Stay tuned to onefc.com for more news about ONE 166: Qatar.
