Seo Hee Ham throws down with Stamp Fairtex at ONE Championship’s latest Prime Video event, ONE Fight Night 14, this Friday in Singapore.
It’s a lot more than a high-level atomweight fight: interim gold is on the line, with the status of champ Angela Lee very much up in the air.
On paper, the clear edge in MMA experience goes to South Korea’s Ham, who has fought in the UFC, ROAD FC, and RIZIN FF. Thailand’s Stamp was a two-sport champion, in Muay Thai and kickboxing, but Ham holds a record of 26-8 and was the reigning RIZIN atomweight champion prior to the coronavirus pandemic. That experience, she told Cageside Press during a virtual press conference on Wednesday, gives her an advantage.
“I believe all jobs require strong experience, and especially for MMA, I have abundant experience doing MMA fights. A lot more than Stamp,” Ham stated. “That’s why I feel I have a very strong advantage in this fight against Stamp, because I have a lot more experience in MMA fights.”
Winning gold in another major promotion, meanwhile, would be extremely fulfilling for the former RIZIN star. As she put it, “if I were to win the ONE Championship title, that would be everything I was looking for in life.”
Of course, the belt on the line this Friday is an interim title. No one could have foreseen the tragedy that shocked the MMA world last year when 18-year old Victoria Lee took her own life, leading sister Angela (and brother Christian, also a ONE Championship title holder) to step away from the sport.
Angela Lee recently opened up about her own suicide attempt, dating back to 2017, and when and if she returns to the sport is unclear. But if she does, Ham hopes to book a date with her.
“If I were to win this ONE Championship title, of course I would love to have a match-up with Angela Lee,” Ham stated on Wednesday. “And that’s only if she’s coming back to the sport.”
Watch the full ONE Fight Night 14 virtual press conference with Seo Hee Ham and Stamp Fairtex above.
