"I didn't expect that" - Denice Zamboanga weighs in on Victoria Souza's upset of Itsuki Hirata at ONE 167
Second-ranked atomweight MMA contender Denice Zamboanga did not envision Victoria Souza scoring a massive victory over Itsuki Hirata at ONE 167.
Many, including the T-Rex Mixed Martial Arts Training Center affiliate, expected the Japanese sensation to return to winning ways, given her expertise and strengths over the Brazilian on paper.
However, that day will have to wait a little longer as 'Vick' took home one of her biggest career wins via a guillotine choke only 91 seconds into their atomweight MMA tilt inside the Impact Arena in Bangkok, Thailand, on June 7.
Reflecting on the match, Denice Zamboanga had this to say to Sportskeeda MMA:
"I didn't expect that because I know Itsuki, she trains very hard just to get her winning streak back, you know. But, yeah, as I said, anything can happen in a fight."
Watch the interview here:
With the loss, Hirata is now 1-4 in her last five appearances. The 24-year-old's last victory inside the Circle came against Lin Heqin at ONE on Prime Video 1 in August 2022.
Meanwhile, Denice Zamboanga made it three in a row courtesy of a win over Noelle Grandjean.
The French-Thai judoka stepped up on short notice to replace Stamp Fairtex, but though she put up a good fight, 'The Menace's' output for 15 minutes impressed all three judges at Circle-side.
Denice Zamboanga says win over Noelle Grandjean did not come easy
Though the ONE atomweight MMA world title favorite kept her winning run alive, she admits she had to work hard to ensure she left the Impact Arena with her hand raised.
In the same interview, Denice Zamboanga added:
"We changed a lot of game plan because I was supposed to fight a lot of striking. But suddenly, I ended up fighting a judo black belt. So there was a lot of planning involved in this fight."
North American fans with an active Amazon Prime Video subscription can rewatch the entire ONE 167 card for free.