ONE: Zamboanga siblings Denice, Drex set lofty goals

Fighter siblings Drex and Denice Zamboanga. ONE PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines—ONE Championship already has its champion siblings in Angela Lee and Christian Lee who are the holders of the women’s atomweight and lightweight titles, respectively, but a new pair is aiming to replicate that feat.

Denice Zamboanga put herself into the title picture through sheer inspiration when she scored a unanimous decision victory over veteran Mei Yamaguchi while older brother Drex will make his promotional debut against Detchadin Soonsirisuphathin in ONE: A New Breed at Impact Arena on Friday.

“Hopefully, if we’re both successful in our next fight, I also want us to achieve that feat as brother and sister champions,” said Denice in Filipino during a Zoom press conference Wednesday.

For the Zamboangas to achieve what the Lees have done, Denice has to defeat Angela Lee for the women’s atomweight title but she has to first go through Watsapinya Kaewkhong in what is considered as a tune-up fight for the Filipino.

Denice (7-0) was supposed to fight Lee for the title but the COVID-19 pandemic put a stop to the proceedings with the former stuck in Thailand and the latter in Singapore.

Drex (8-5), meanwhile, will have to string up a few more wins if he wants to be in the flyweight title conversation.

“I’m just very happy because I will make my ONE debut and my sister is also in the card of my first fight,” said Drex in Filipino. “I never expected that I will be at ONE because of the pandemic.”

Drex said that his role as a brother to Denice extends beyond their familial relationship as he always pushes his sister to her limits as her coach.

“I’m not just a kuya but also a coach and we have a responsibility to each other to help each other and at the same time I also care for her every time I’m at her corner,” said Drex.