ONE Championship: Ritu Phogat feels for Denice Zamboanga, but says ‘there’s nothing we can do’
- ‘The Indian Tigress’ compares Denice Zamboanga’s split decision defeat by Ham Seo-hee to her own controversial loss to Bi Nguyen
- ‘The judges’ word is final and we have to respect that,’ says Phogat – ‘that’s what I did when I thought the verdict was not fair’
India’s Ritu Phogat went from losing her spot in ONE Championship’s atomweight grand prix to being a shock participant in the semi-finals.
Despite the roller coaster ride that the 27-year old wrestling stand-out has been on in 2021, her best efforts were overshadowed by the opening round‘s final bout.
“I‘m aware of the controversy that happened,” Phogat told the Post. “This is perhaps the same thing that happened to me when fighting Bi [Nguyen].
“But having said that, I think the [judges’] word is the final word and we have to respect that, and that’s precisely what I had done during my previous match where I thought the verdict was not fair.
“Ultimately, we have to abide by what the referees say and there’s nothing much we can do about it. The referee’s call is the final call.”
ONE: Angela Lee says Meng Bo ‘talked a lot of crap, got what she deserved’
Phogat (6-1) will now prepare herself for one of three women remaining in the tournament. However, she is uncertain who she‘ll face thanks to ONE putting the semi-final matchups in the hands of the fans via an online vote.
“It wouldn‘t be fair for me to pick one of the three because I truly believe that all the names on the card right now, they’re the top contenders,” Phogat said. “They deserve every bit of their positioning so I will not pick out one name.”
“Usually when I step foot into that circle I make sure it‘s a fulfilling performance,” Phogat said. “I make sure I don’t leave any stone unturned so that later on when I evaluate performance I know I’ve given it 100 per cent, and that’s exactly what I thought with Meng Bo’s fight.
“I gave my best and I know I need to keep progressing with every fight, but I’m very happy with the performance against Meng Bo so there’s nothing I would change during that fight.”
