“Focused on takedowns” - Alyona Rassohyna says Denice Zamboanga’s past opponents disregarded her striking

Alyona Rassohyna recently downplayed the strides that Denice Zamboanga has made in terms of her striking.

As far as the No. 4-ranked atomweight MMA contender is concerned, the Filipina fighter was only able to outstrike her last three opponents since they didn't prepare accordingly.

Rassohyna shared her assumptions in an exclusive interview with ONE Championship:

“As I understand it, their game plan was focused on takedowns, but their stand-up preparation was weak, which gave Denice an advantage in the stand-up.”

After a few years away from the Circle, Alyona Rassohyna will return at ONE Fight Night 27: Tang vs. Abdullaev on Prime Video, where she'll take on Denice Zamboanga.

The Ukrainian powerhouse is quite confident about leaving Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand as the interim atomweight MMA world champion this coming Friday, Dec. 10.

While Rassohyna's greatest strengths lie in her world-class grappling, she also fine-tuned her stand-up game during her hiatus.

Plus, the 34-year-old vowed to not make the same mistakes that Lin Heqin, Julie Mezabarba, and Noelle Grandjean made, who all disregarded Zamboanga's striking.

If 'The Menace' decides to turn this into a stand-up brawl, Rassohyna will be a willing dance partner and gladly throw heavy leather.

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Alyona Rassohyna says she won't fall for Denice Zamboanga's deceptive feints

Denice Zamboanga has been piecing up the competition with her laser-like jab, backed by a swift pinpoint straight combination.

Alyona Rassohyna, though, was quick to notice that it was the Filipina's terrific use of feints that made her boxing shine in the last couple of fights. She told ONE:

“The work that I’ve seen from Denice in her last fights showed that the girls who boxed with her, they were worse in class and technically unprepared to fight her in stand-up. They didn’t have the setups or feints to create entries."

ONE Fight Night 27 will air live in US primetime free for Prime Video subscribers in the United States and Canada.