Denice “The Menace” Zamboanga believes that by staying active this year, she’ll have a better shot at defeating Alyona Rassohyna.
The second-ranked contender and the Ukrainian grappler will dispute the ONE Interim Atomweight MMA World Title at ONE Fight Night 27 on January 11, 2025, at Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand.
It’s been a while since Rassohyna last competed in ONE Championship due to the birth of her daughter.
READ: Crucial 2025 set for Team Philippines in ONE Championship
“I feel like my main advantage would certainly be my activity. She hasn’t competed in a long time and I’m way more active,” she said.
However, Zamboanga’s only looking at it as her advantage physically. In fact, she doesn’t expect the layoff to affect Rassohyna that much, as she believes her hunger to win will mitigate whatever ring-rust she might have.
“I feel like she’s gonna come out hungry. Her hunger to win will be there. Her inspiration would be her family for sure,” Zamboanga said.
Nonetheless, Zamboanga also has something to prove.
The well-rounded Filipina believes that while Rassohyna is a known grappler, part of her mystique comes from facing mostly strikers.
In this clash, the T-Rex MMA representative believes she’ll be the one dominating when the action hits the canvas.
“I haven’t seen her face a true grappler, or a wrestler,” she said. “It’s always a striker which allows her to dominate on the ground. In this fight, I’d like to prove that I’m a better grappler.”
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