AFTER losing her last two fights, Denice Zamboanga couldn't wish for a better chance at a career reboot than fighting in her home country.
The No. 3-ranked women's atomweight gets that opportunity when she battles Lin Heqin at ONE Fight Night 5 this Saturday morning at Mall of Asia Arena.
"I'm very excited and very grateful that ONE Championship gave me this opportunity. This is a very important fight for me because I just came from a loss and this fight, I want to make sure to get back to rank No. 1 and fight for the title," she said.
[READ: Brooks plans to expose Pacio's grappling weakness]
Zamboanga stumbled down the ONE Athlete Rankings after losing twice to Korean foe Ham Seo Hee, her first two defeats after an 8-0 start to her career.
But getting her first fight in Manila under the ONE banner only motivates the 25-year-old, all the more that she has her brother Drex training alongside her.
"For me and my brother to fight in the same week, sobrang saya nun na parehas kayong magkapatid na magkasama," she said of Drex, who will be fighting ONE Warrior Series winner Adonis Sevilleno in the lead card of ONE 164: Pacio vs Brooks in the evening.
For Zamboanga, the goal never changes and she's still as driven to put herself in a position to challenge Angela Lee for the ONE Women's Atomweight World Championship one day.
"That's the goal: to take the atomweight title. In this fight, I'm gonna show Denice the Menace is coming back and I want to show how Filipinos are the best fighters," she vowed.
"I'll make sure your tickets are worth it for this fight night."
Get more of the latest sports news & updates on SPIN.ph