Stamp Fairtex of Thailand knows that she must bring her A-game when she meets second-ranked atomweight MMA contender 'The Menace' Denice Zamboanga in the Circle early next month. Speaking to veteran ONE Championship broadcast analyst Mitch 'The Dragon' Chilson as a special guest at ONE Fight Night 22: Sundell vs. Diachkova on Prime Video last weekend, Stamp was hesitant to give fans an early prediction to her next fight.
She instead laid out a vague skeleton of her game plan heading into her first world title defense.
The Fairtex representative stated:
"I'm probably gonna use Muay Thai because I'm fighting here in Thailand. So Muay Thai is the way to go."
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Stamp is the former ONE women's atomweight Muay Thai and kickboxing world champion, so going to her elite striking sounds like a good plan indeed.
Stamp will defend the atomweight MMA gold against Zamboanga in the main event of ONE 167: Stamp vs. Zamboanga on Prime Video. The event broadcasts live from the Impact Arena in Bangkok, Thailand.
The two elite atomweight fighters are 'besties', former training partners who used to spar together at Fairtex a few years ago.
Fans in the United States and Canada can catch all the action live and absolutely free on Friday, June 7th, U.S. primetime, via an active Amazon Prime Video subscription.
Stamp Fairtex says fight with Denice Zamboanga is purely business: "I have to defend my belt"
In Stamp Fairtex's mind, her upcoming showdown with close friend Denice Zamboanga is just another day at the office.
She isn't thinking too much about how trading punches to the face could affect their friendship. Stamp says she simply wants to fulfill her duty as world champion.
The atomweight queen told South China Morning Post in a recent interview:
"I knew we'd always have to fight because we were in the same weight. And I know she wants to be the champion, but I have to defend [my belt]."