“Just the same” - Three-sport menace Stamp Fairtex says she and close friend Denice Zamboanga have similar grappling skills
Fans and critics alike have voiced out that Stamp Fairtex and Denice Zamboanga share nearly identical skill sets, and the Thai megastar seems to believe so.
The reigning ONE women's atomweight MMA world champion and the Filipino star were once training partners and it seems this familiarity led to the pair developing a similar style.
In an interview with the South China Morning Post, Stamp said she and Zamboanga have almost the same strengths when it comes to their ground game.
"I think it's on the same skill. Just the same," said Stamp of her and Zamboanga's similarities.
Both Stamp and Zamboanga are natural strikers, but the former was the one who showcased more of her base.
Stamp is a former ONE atomweight Muay Thai and kickboxing world champion, while Zamboanga fought exclusively under MMA in her ONE Championship career.
Nevertheless, their similarities will be tested when Stamp defends the ONE women's atomweight MMA world title against Zamboanga at ONE 167.
The highly anticipated matchup between the two close friends goes down on June 7 at Impact Arena in Bangkok.
ONE 167 is available live and free to all Prime Video subscribers in the United States and Canada.
Watch Stamp's entire interview below:
Stamp vows to capitalize on Denice Zamboanga's flaws
While she and Zamboanga share a close friendship, that hasn't stopped Stamp from promising a highlight reel head kick knockout at ONE 167.
Stamp and Zamboanga spent years training with each other at Fairtex Training Center in Pattaya, Thailand, and this familiarity allowed the three-sport queen to analyze 'The Menace' to a tee.
"One thing she is not good at is when she punches or stands. She ducks her hand a lot. So maybe that's an opportunity for me to throw a high kick," said Stamp.
Zamboanga once had Fairtex Training Center as her home stable in the late 2010s, but she has since moved back to the Philippines and joined her brother Drex's gym T-Rex MMA in Manila.