Stamp Fairtex Withdraws From ONE 167 Due To Injury, Tawanchai Vs. Nattawut II Promoted To Main Event
Reigning ONE Women’s Atomweight MMA World Champion Stamp Fairtex has suffered an injury, which has forced her to withdraw from her highly anticipated main event clash with surging #2-ranked contender and close friend Denice “The Menace” Zamboanga at ONE 167 on Prime Video.
The blockbuster spectacle will move forward without the Thai megastar.
Now, the ONE Featherweight Muay Thai World Title showdown between defending king Tawanchai PK Saenchai and #3-ranked “Smokin” Jo Nattawut will headline the bill, which broadcasts live in U.S. primetime from the Impact Arena in Bangkok, Thailand, on Friday, June 7.
As Stamp entered the final weeks of her camp at Fairtex Training Center in Pattaya, Thailand, she fell victim to an unfortunate accident.
The 26-year-old titleholder said:
“My sparring partner was behind me, and she was going to take me down. She grabbed my body and lifted me up, but since she is smaller than me, when she lifted me up, she couldn’t lift me that high, and my leg was still touching the ground.
“Then, she twisted. When she twisted, my leg was still touching the ground, so my knee got twisted. When it twisted, it made a loud noise. So, I stopped immediately and went for an MRI after that. [And the doctor said] my meniscus was torn.”
Stamp’s scheduled bout with Zamboanga would have marked her first ONE Women’s Atomweight MMA World Championship defense.
The Thai claimed the vacant World Title with a riveting third-round TKO victory over Ham Seo Hee last September. With the win, she became an unprecedented three-sport ONE World Champion, having previously held both the promotion’s kickboxing and Muay Thai crowns.
Although she will not compete at ONE 167 now, Stamp has a message for fans who were looking forward to seeing her in action:
“I worked hard and was very focused on this fight. Accidents happen all the time.
“For those who were going to watch me, I would like you to give encouragement to all Thai fighters. Tawanchai [PK Saenchai], Jo [Nattawut], Rodtang [Jitmuangnon], and Mikey [Musumeci].”
Stamp has undergone successful surgery to repair her torn meniscus and has several months of rehab ahead of her. As a result, her bout with ONE Women’s Strawweight MMA World Champion “The Panda” Xiong Jing Nan at ONE 168: Denver is now in question, with an official update to be provided in the near future.
Stay tuned to onefc.com for more news.
