Ham Seo Hee is out of the ONE Women’s Atomweight World Grand Prix, but taking her place is Julie Mezabarba.
ONEFC.com broke the news last Wednesday night that Ham had to withdraw from the tournament owing to an injury she sustained while training for her semifinal showdown against #2-ranked Stamp Fairtex at ONE: NEXTGEN on October 29.
Losing Ham, who was considered one of the favorites in the tournament, might be a big blow, but the good thing is that Mezabarba is an excellent replacement.
The Brazilian had a debut to remember as she dominated former ONE Atomweight World Title contender Mei “V.V” Yamaguchi in the tournament’s alternate bout at ONE: EMPOWER last May, staying in control from start to finish.
The RD Champions standout showcased her beautiful boxing, popping Yamaguchi with crisp straight rights and thunderous uppercuts all night long, while also showing her impressive grappling defense by repeatedly stuffing the Japanese woman’s takedown attempts.
With Mezabarba’s smooth boxing going up against Stamp’s world-class Muay Thai, fans can still expect the same striking masterclass they originally did with Ham.
Number four-ranked Ritu “The Indian Tigress” Phogat and Itsuki “Android 18” Hirata will be contesting the other Grand Prix final spot in a clash between two grapplers.
However, it’s back to the drawing board for Ham, who will have to take some time off recovering. But considering that she was eyeing that World Grand Prix win the moment she came in, it will be interesting to see how she returns from this setback.
In the meantime, ONE Championship returns to live action with ONE: FIRST STRIKE on October 15. Download the ONE Super App for more details on the event.