DENICE Zamboanga made no qualms on what she wants next: to reclaim her spot as the no. 1 contender for the ONE Women's Atomweight World Championship.
Denice Zamboanga sets sights on No. 1 contender spot
And if it means that she'll face a friend in Stamp Fairtex to do that, then she has no choice but to face off against her former Fairtex stablemate.
"Yun na kasi yung next in line. Gusto kong mabalik yung no. 1 rank at yun lang yung only way to get back to no. 1 which is kalabanin mo yung no. 1," she said after her split-decision victory over Lin Heqin at ONE Fight Night 5: De Ridder vs Malykhin on Saturday.
"Syempre, nothing's personal. Alam naman niya yun na mahal na mahal ko si Stamp. Yun lang, it's all about business."
Zamboanga admitted that she and Stamp have long envisioned a potential bout between them, yet with both of them in the running for a title shot against the reigning champion Angela Lee, those prospects couldn't get any more closer to reality now.
"Nagcha-chat kami na we'll fight each other pero iniisip namin sa sarili namin kung paano kami maglalaban. Feeling ko magtatawanan lang kami kaysa magsuntukan," she joked. "Mahirap pero syempre business is business."
As Zamboanga plots her next move, the no. 3-ranked contender is planning to settle here in the Philippines as she moves her camp from Bangkok to his brother Drex's T-Rex MMA Gym at home.
"I want to focus here in the Philippines so I can improve my striking. Maybe I can go back to Bangkok and train sometimes but based in the Philippines na," she said.
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