PhotoCred: MMA Junkie
Jessica Andrade confirms move back down to UFC women’s strawweight division
Former champion Jessica Andrade confirmed her move back down to the UFC women’s strawweight division after recently getting stopped by Erin Blanchfield.
Andrade took a short-notice main event against Blanchfield last weekend at UFC Vegas 69 and lost via second-round submission. The defeat snapped a three-fight win streak for Andrade, who has beaten Lauren Murphy, Amanda Lemos, and Cynthia Calvillo before that. Overall, Andrade has a 3-2 record at women’s flyweight. She is actually one of the highest-ranked fighters in the weight class, but after losing to Blanchfield, it won’t be easy for her to get back into the title picture anytime soon at 125lbs. Instead, a move back down to 115lbs and a potential rematch with the UFC women’s strawweight champion Weili Zhang seems like a more realistic path if she wants to become a champ again.
Speaking to AG Fight following UFC Vegas 69, Andrade confirmed that her immediate plan in the wake of the loss to Blanchfield is a move back down to 115lbs. For Andrade, who is a former champion in the weight class, she believes that she has a clearer path to the belt against Zhang, and she’s ready to get back on the title track.
“Now it’s back to my division (strawweight). I’m feeling very good about dropping the weight again, I’m very calm, now there’s all the UFC nutrition work. So, I’m ready to go back to my division, put my roots down at 52 (kg), have my name up there in the rankings again, because that’s very important, and have the chance to fight for the belt again, against (Zhang) Weili or whoever the future champion is. I don’t know if I’ll have the chance to fight for the belt now, but I’ll be ready to climb all the steps again,” Andrade said.
Do you think Jessica Andrade will be able to become a champion again at 115lbs?
