SUMMARY
- ONE Atomweight MMA Champion Stamp Fairtex is set to fight Xiong Jing Nan at ONE 168.
- Ahead of the fight, Fairtex calls Jing Nan the biggest challenge of her career yet.
Nobody would argue if you were to say that 2023 was the biggest year in the history of Stamp Fairtex’s career. The Thai superstar made history as the first-ever three-sport ONE World Champion. And while the accolade will forever be associated with her name, Stamp’s fire still burns brightly.
The dancing diva will move up from the atomweight division to challenge ONE Women’s Strawweight MMA World Champion Xiong Jing Nan at ONE 168 when ONE Championship heads to Denver, Colorado’s Ball Arena on Friday, September 6.
Stamp reached legendary status in ONE by defeating names like Janet Todd, Ham Seo Hee, and Chuang Tai King to win all three of her combat sports crowns. However, the 26-year-old views Xiong as her biggest challenge yet. She is aware of the Chinese phenom’s striking prowess, and she hopes to exploit “The Panda’s” grappling abilities.
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“I think ‘The Panda’ is going to be my biggest test because I’m going up in weight for this fight,” Stamp told South China Morning Post. “She has very good boxing and is a very good fighter. But I haven’t seen her ground game or grappling much. Only striking.”
The pair will collide in the evening’s main event when ONE Championship heads back to the U.S. for the first time since May 2023. And if Stamp can earn a second consecutive World Title in as many fights, the Fairtex fighter will truly be a step above the rest.
Stamp Fairtex won’t let mutual respect stop her from defeating Denice Zamboanga
Before three-sport ONE World Champion Stamp Fairtex can think about adding Xiong Jing Nan’s strawweight MMA gold to her collection, she’ll first have to defend her newly-minted ONE Women’s Atomweight MMA World Title this June. Stamp meets longtime friend and #2-ranked atomweight contender Denice Zamboanga in the main event of ONE 167 on Friday, May 3, at Bangkok, Thailand’s Impact Arena.
Fighting a friend can be a hard mindset to shift into. But you don’t become a three-sport queen by being nice. Stamp knows if Zamboanga had her way, the Thai star would be the one looking up at the lights. So as far as niceties goes, all love will be suspended for the collision in June.
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“I know she wants my belt. We have to have this fight because I know she wants my belt. She wants to be champion. I know we’re friends, but the friendship is behind us for this fight,” Stamp said.
Should all things go as planned, Stamp could close out another year as a formidable queen in the world or MMA.