Rose Namajunas moves up to flyweight, faces no. 2 ranked Manon Fiorot at UFC France
Rather than aiming for a trilogy bout with UFC strawweight champion Weili Zhang (23-3), former two-time strawweight champion Rose Namajunas (11-5) will be making her flyweight debut in her next outing.
Namajunas will be facing no. 2 ranked Manon Fiorot (10-1) in her 125 lb debut at UFC on ESPN 51.
UFC on ESPN 51 is to go down on September 2, 2023, live from the Accor Arena in Paris, France.
France’s Manon Fiorot has been a tough out for everyone in the division since her arrival.
Following a split decision defeat in her professional debut, Fiorot has since won her last 10-straight, including a 5-0 run inside the octagon with victories over the likes of Victoria Leonardo (TKO), Tabatha Ricci (TKO), Mayra Bueno Silva (UD), as well as former title challengers Jennifer Maia (UD) and Katlyn Chookagian (UD) in her latest two appearances.
Rose Namajunas on the other hand, though dominant in her own right, has had some hiccups along the way.
Following a 4-0 amateur run and following a 3-0 run on The Ultimate Fighter 20 where she secured all three victories via submission, Namajunas would face Carla Esparza for the inaugural UFC strawweight championship in her promotional debut at the season’s finale.
Namajunas was mauled and submitted by Esparza before she’d go 4-1 over the course of her next five bouts with three stoppages, only defeat coming via split decision, going into her title shot with then champion Joanna Jedrzejczyk.
Namajunas shocked the world with her first-round knockout of Jedrzejczyk, and silenced the naysayers in the rematch as she was awarded the unanimous decision victory, making the first defense of her title.
Next, she was KO’d (slam) by Jessica Andrade, a fight she was looking incredible in up until she lost, before she’d take some time off. Namajunas then rematched Andrade, defeating her via split decision, before going into her title shot against Weili Zhang, who had since defeated Andrade for the title.
Namajunas would KO Zhang in the opening round, and again make the first defense of her title in the immediate rematch, this time via split decision.
Her next fight was another rematch, this one against Carla Esparza.
Though many people believed she won the fight, neither did much of anything at all throughout the 25-minute encounter, and she lost her title via split decision in one of the most uneventful fights you’ll ever see considering.
Now 15 months later Namajunas jumps divisions and goes after a dominant no. 2 contender.
Who comes out on top in this flyweight bout going down at UFC France?
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