ONE Championship: Stamp Fairtex wants to focus on MMA in 2021, starting with atomweight grand prix
- Former ONE Muay Thai and kickboxing champ open to rematches for either belt but will prioritise mixed martial arts
- ‘I think she changed the rules too often, her body was kinda confused,’ says teammate Wondergirl Fairtex
It’s been a chastening year for everybody, but few more so in the world of combat sports than Stamp Fairtex.
The 22-year-old began 2020 on top of two divisions across two different sports in ONE Championship. But Stamp saw Janet Todd snatch her atomweight kick-boxing belt by split decision in Singapore at February’s King of the Jungle, just before the coronavirus pandemic put a halt to ONE’s schedule for five months.
When the Asian martial arts organisation got back in action in Thailand, Stamp then lost her atomweight Muay Thai title to Brazil’s Allycia Rodrigues in a shock ending to the headliner at August’s A New Breed. The unanimous decision loss came just a month after Stamp had stretched her MMA record to 4-0 in a lopsided first-round TKO against the outmatched Puja Tomar.
“I think she changed the rules too often,” teammate Wondergirl Fairtex told SCMP MMA. “This month MMA, kickboxing another month, then Muay Thai – I think her body was kinda confused.
“If the atomweight grand prix is happening, I think she should focus on MMA. It’s better for her because it’s a big match, a good opportunity to fight.