ONE Championship: Ham Seo-hee edges Denice Zamboanga by split decision in controversial call
- South Korean veteran progresses to the atomweight grand prix semi-finals with win on all-female ONE: Empower card
- Filipino Zamboanga suffers first defeat – and nasty cut on forehead – but looked to have done enough to secure huge upset
Ham Seo-hee may have had her hand raised on her ONE Championship debut, but you would forgive Denice Zamboanga for feeling aggrieved.
The South Korean former UFC and Rizin star (24-8) progressed to the semi-finals of ONE’s atomweight grand prix on Friday night’s all-female Empower card in Singapore after the Filipino looked to have done enough to edge her way to a shock victory.
The relief was evident on 34-year-old Ham’s face, the No 1-ranked Zamboanga (8-1) looking despondent after falling to her first defeat.
Ham joined Itsuki Hirata, Stamp Fairtex and Ritu Phogat in the last four of the tournament, which will determine the next challenger for atomweight champion Angela Lee’s title.
The first round was light on striking, with Ham seeming to spend all of five minutes defending a takedown attempt from Zamboanga.
The “Lycan Queen” also seemed to edge a tight second round, with Ham seemingly needing a big finish to take the victory at the Singapore Indoor Stadium.
An injury timeout was called halfway through the third round when Zamboanga opened up a nasty cut on her forehead after coming forward into the side of Ham’s head.
That blow caused a hematoma next to the South Korean’s eye – but she looked nonplussed as she walked around the ring waiting for the restart, as doctors tended to Zamboanga.
The fight eventually continued after a few minutes, and the Filipino went straight out, lifted Ham in the air and dumped her on the canvas in an emphatic statement.
Ham did her best to defend the ground and pound coming her way, staying busy with strikes of her own from the bottom.
When they were separated at the bell, Ham’s yellow shirt had turned orange, stained with blood from Zamboanga’s cut.
But it looked like the underdog may have secured a huge upset, only for the judges to deny her and see it for the veteran.
