“Happy that I won” - Denice Zamboanga reflects back on tough fight against Noelle Grandjean
Filipino atomweight MMA fighter Denice Zamboanga had to make a last-minute recalibration to her game in her most recent outing but is grateful and happy to have come up with a victory.
'The Menace' was a unanimous decision winner over French-Thai fighter Noelle Grandjean in their atomweight clash at ONE 167: Tawanchai vs Nattawut on June 7 in Bangkok, Thailand.
It was, however, not who she originally trained for as she was initially set to headline ONE 167 and challenge ONE atomweight queen Stamp Fairtex in a title clash. The Thai superstar had to withdraw after injuring her knee in training.
Despite the change in opponent, Denice Zamboanga still went on with her business at ONE 167 and put on a winning performance, although she believes she could have done better.
In a post-fight interview with Sportskeeda MMA, the T-Rex Mixed Martial Arts Training Center standout reflected on her showdown against Grandjean, saying:
"Yeah, I'm feeling great. Happy that I won, but a bit disappointed because our game plan was changed for a few weeks, and that's why I'm disappointed. I was supposed to fight her and finish her."
Watch the interview below:
At ONE 167, Denice Zamboanga showcased her shored-up stand-up game to continuously put pressure on 'Lil Monkey', even inflicting damage on the right eye of her opponent in the early goings, on her way to the convincing decision victory.
The win was the third straight for Zamboanga and she is looking forward to getting her title shot next.
Denice Zamboanga wants to stay active following win at ONE 167
Denice Zamboanga looks to sustain her solid form after her victory at ONE 167 on June 7 and seeks to be active, even vying for an interim world title if possible.
The 27-year-old fighter shared this in the same interview with Sportskeeda MMA, expressing willingness to take on anybody who will be pitted against her moving forward.
'The Menace' said:
"I want to be active in the division. If I can get an interim or something else that will be great. For the [interim world title], I'd fight anyone."
Prior to seeing action at ONE 167, which she was supposed to headline against Thai superstar Stamp Fairtex in a title clash until the latter got injured, Zamboanga last competed in April last year.