By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña
Filipina Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) superstar Denice Zamboanga is back in the ONE Fighting Championship stage after getting lined up in the upcoming Fight Night 9 event on April 22, 2023.
The former no.1 contender in the ONE Women’s atomweight division will be fighting Julie Mezabarba of Brazil and is looking to win her second-straight match since returning last December 2022.
After five months of break from professional MMA, Zamboanga bounced back against Heqin Lin when she scored a split decision victory during the ONE on Prime Video 5: De Ridder vs Malykhin event.
Her win against Lin ended her two-match losing streak she received at the hands of Seo Hee Ham, one of her main rivals in the atomweight division.
Zamboanga and her camp lost in a controversial decision during their first encounter against Ham but failed to retaliate in their rematch last March 26, 2022.
The Filipina ground expert made her ONE FC debut last January 2017 and made a lasting impression after scoring a technical knockout victory over the veteran Paj Nut.
After the Nut fight, Zamboanga quickly rose to the atomweight standings after adding Watsyapinya Kaewkhong and Mei Yamaguchi to her list of casualties.
On the other hand, the Brazilian Mezabarba will seek to end her two-match slump and shake off ring rust when she returns this April.
Mezabarba dropped her last fight against Filipina striker Jennifer Olsim via a split decision during the ONE FC 158 event last June 2022.
