Denice Zamboanga ONE 173: WATCH: Filipino star Denice Zamboanga brings the fireworks against China's Lin Heqin in Manila homecoming

WATCH: Filipino star Denice Zamboanga brings the fireworks against China's Lin Heqin in Manila homecoming

Modified Apr 15, 2025 14:31 GMT

Denice Zamboanga pulled off a hard-fought split decision win over Lin Heqin. [Photo via: ONE Championship] — Denice Zamboanga pulled off a hard-fought split decision win over Lin Heqin [Photo via ONE Championship]

ONE interim women's atomweight MMA world champion Denice Zamboanga gave her Filipino compatriots much to cheer for when she went toe-to-toe with Lin Heqin at ONE on Prime Video 5 in December 2022. It was her first bout in the Philippines as a ONE athlete.

Raring to taste victory again after dropping her last two outings to Ham Seo Hee in September 2021 and March 2022, 'The Menace' showcased how much she has improved at the Chinese standout's expense.

Known best for her grappling, Zamboanga gladly flaunted her much-improved striking game as she traded blows with Lin throughout the bout, even staggering the 31-year-old at times.

However, 'MMA Sister' fought back in the second round by landing some slick counters and taking the fight to Zamboanga. When the final bell rang, the hometown heroine did just enough to get the split decision win.

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Rewatch the entire fight below, which ONE posted on YouTube:

After edging out Lin on the scorecards, Zamboanga followed it up with unanimous decision wins over Julie Mezabarba and Noelle Grandejan in April 2023 and June 2024, respectively.

The T-Rex MMA Training Center affiliate captured the interim crown over Alyona Rassohyna via TKO this past January to set up a unification bout with good friend and ONE women's atomweight MMA world champion Stamp Fairtex.

Denice Zamboanga, Stamp set to duel for undisputed crown at ONE 173

Denice Zamboanga and Stamp's first-ever meeting inside the circle over the right to be called the undisputed queen of the women's atomweight MMA division deserves to headline the card.

The former training partners will have that honor, as their unification bout will happen in the main event of ONE 173: Denver on August 2, inside the Ball Arena in Denver, Colorado.

Tickets for ONE's third card in the United States are available via Ticketmaster.

About the author

Karl has been an MMA writer at Sportskeeda since 2023. He holds a Bachelor of Arts major in history, which helps him pay attention to the finer details while writing, and also has first-hand experience in boxing. He has a total experience of 5 years, and has worked for the International Business Times.

Karl turned into an MMA fan back in 2011 after watching Tito Ortiz defeat Ryan Bader via first-round submission at UFC 132. He has interviewed ONE world champions like Eduard Folayang, Joshua Pacio, Stamp Fairtex, and Tawanchai in his career so far.

On the non-MMA side of things, he interviewed WWE superstar Matt Riddle in 2021 and his question about Roman Reigns elicited an interesting answer which was widely covered by outlets like Sportskeeda and Cultaholic Wrestling's YouTube channel. He has also interviewed NBA stars Dwight Howard, Nick Young, Andre Roberson, Shabazz Muhammad, Jason Williams and Brian Scalabrine plus Filipino women's volleyball star Alyssa Valdez.

Karl ensures to double-check facts before using them in articles, and reads up on potential topics for pieces a day before. In his off time, he likes to play video games, and keep up with basketball and pro wrestling.

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Edited by Harvey Leonard