A sense of overwhelming relief flooded through the Philippines’ Denice Zamboanga just as the bell rang through the iconic Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Thailand last January 11, as it signaled a scintillating win over Ukraine’s Alyona Rassohyna.
Finally, after a long and winding road, Denice was a champion.
With barely 10 seconds left in the second round, Zamboanga highlighted her masterclass of a victory with a series of elbows and punches to punish Rassohyna, leaving referee Herb Dean with no other choice but to stop the fight, handing the win — and the elusive belt — to the 27-year-old from Quezon City.
Falling to her knees with tears in her eyes, Zamboanga relished the feeling that after everything she’s been through, years of gut-check time finally culminated with rousing glory.
Speaking to One Sports for Profiles, Denice detailed what was going through her mind as years of waiting finally got rewarded with a big gold belt.
After five years of setbacks and delays, Denice finally got her due.
“Yung time na na-stop [na yung fight] nung referee, sabi ko ‘Panaginip ba ‘to? Totoo ba ‘to?’” Zamboanga said.
(ONE's big gold belt represent Denice Zamboanga's long and arduous journey to near the top of the division after years of setback and delay)
The thoughts of disbelief may be confusing to some, but for those closest to Zamboanga, they knew that her reaction was something warranted, if not expected.
That is, before stepping onto the ring to fight Rassohyna for the ONE Interim Women’s Atomweight MMA Championship, there were quite the list of hurdles for the Filipina fighter — most of which were out of her control.
Since being named the no. 1 contender in 2020, there were multiple chances for Zamboanga to take the crown. But each time those chances would come, she would get sidetracked somehow, some way.
The first, and most significant of many was the pregnancy of Angela Lee, which robbed Zamboanga arguably the biggest fight of her career.
In the meantime, ONE announced the Atomweight Grand Prix to move the division along, which also became the venue for Zamboanga’s biggest setback.
As the top-ranked challenger, Denice suffered a tough, albeit controversial, quarterfinals loss to Ham Seo-hee. To make matters worse, Zamboanga lost the rematch to Ham, pushing her down the pecking order.
But even as she slowly made her way back, things still didn’t quite go Zamboanga’s way.
As her good friend Stamp Fairtex took the reins of the women’s atomweight division following Lee’s retirement, Denice was set to fight her former teammate for the title, only for the mega bout to be cancelled due to the Thai star’s injury.
Nevertheless, Zamboanga won a rather risky fight against Noelle Grandjean to keep her ascent.
Then came Denice’s own injury woes, moving the fateful fight against Rassohyna from October 2024 to January 2025.
“Actually, may takot rin ako [na hindi parin matuloy]. Parang na-trauma ako sa mga delays na nangyari.” Zamboanga said, even as the Alyona fight finally loomed.
“Pero ayun, sinabi ko sa sarili ko na hangga’t hindi ako nakakatungtong sa ring, hindi ako naniniwala na lalaban ako.”
But step inside the ring she did on that one Saturday morning, which also featured on US prime time.
Flexing a physique that is arguably the best in her career, Zamboanga affirmed her prime time status against her Ukranian foe, which highlighted an improved defense on the ground game.
Fighting in front Stamp, Zamboanga made her grand intentions known as she flaunted her biggest performance as a fighter, which also earned her a hefty USD 50,000 bonus.
In retrospect, Zamboanga agreed that it was the best she has ever done as a fighter. The secret? Loads of preparation.
(After her fall as no. 1 contender, Denice Zamboanga worked tirelessly to get better, which led to her rise now as interim champion)
Denice particularly shone in her defending against the Rassohyna’s ground game, which was a detail that she and her coaches Drex Zamboanga and Fritz Biagtan were especially concerned about.
With the weight of all the delays on her shoulder, Zamboanga came out swinging. This fight was the opportunity to make things count.
“[We planned na] we will use her advantage as her disadvantage. Kung saan siya magaling, doon ko siya tatalunin,” said the fighter out of Trex MMA.
“Alam namin na mas magaling siya when it comes to submission, to scramble, pero talagang inaral namin ng sobra talaga. Yung mga bawa’t galaw niya, kahit konting galaw talaga inaral namin.”
Indeed, the devil was in the details for Denice, with her deeply engaging game plan for Rassohyna proving to be key to victory.
But of course, it wasn’t all about the physical side.
Having been exposed to the multiple setbacks in her journey to the belt, including those back-to-back losses against Ham, mental challenges took their toll on Zamboanga leading up to the fight in Bangkok.
But during the darkest of days, Zamboanga always looked on the positive side and took the time to hone her craft. After all, chance favors the prepared mind.
“Gusto ko na talaga lumaban ng championship, [dati pa].” Zamboanga said, having first been included in the ONE title conversation back in 2020.
“Pero yun nga, expected ko before na dahil hindi kami nakalaban ni Angela Lee [dahil sa pregnancy niya], kahit sana interim magbibigay. But instead of [having] interim, nagkaron ng Grand Prix.”
True enough, it was the aforementioned Grand Prix that became the venue of Zamboanga’s first and biggest loss in the realm of ONE Championship.
After her struggles with her Korean nemesis, Zamboanga felt like the belt was inching farther away, and couldn’t help but lament over lost chances.
But with a positive mindset, Denice kept on pushing for the right time.
“Yung back-to-back losses ko na yun [vs. Ham], yun yung nag-push sa akin na mag-train pa ako ngayon. Sinabi ko sa sarili ko na kailangan ko pa mag-training talaga,” said Zamboanga.
“Siguro yun yung reason kung bakit hindi ako natutuloy [dati] sa championship is that, kailangan ko pa talaga mag-develop.”
Thankfully also for Zamboanga, her incredible support system was as strong as her iron mindset.
Denice’s biggest supporters bar none were brother-coach Drex, and husband Fritz, who are also MMA fighters.
Understanding what she’s going through to heart, Drex and Fritz are able to steady the ship for Zamboanga despite all the rough challenges.
“Sobrang laking tulong ni kuya at saka ni Fritz sa akin. Di lang siya physically na pinapalakas nila ako, [pero] mino-motivate din nila ako, tinutulungan nila ako mentally and also spiritually,” said the 27-year-old.
“Sila yung parang nag-build ng character ko eh. Before, when it comes to fighting, talagang physical lang talaga. Fight kung fight, training lang. [Pero] kapag kasama ko sila talagang, nandoon yung fun sa training. Hindi lang siya serious mode. Nandoon yung nage-enjoy ako,” Denice added.
(Denice Zamboanga's date with destiny is on the way, as ONE Championship announced her fight with Stamp for August at ONE 173 to unify the women's atomweight belts)
With all that being said, nobody really knows the answer if everything that Zamboanga went through before claiming the belt were a necessary experience to shape her into the fighter that she is today.
But as far as Denice is concerned, the ups and downs were worth it, especially since it moulded her into a different fighter – one that is more than just a sum of her parts.
“I would say, nag-develop talaga ako [through the years] when it comes to my striking, when it comes to my wrestling, defense, and ground game,” she said.
“Talagang mas hulma na ako na Denice Zamboanga.”