5 Defining Moments: Rose Namajunas

Rose Namajunas long ago secured her spot in history as a two-time Ultimate Fighting Championship titleholder at 115 pounds. Her focus now centers on building out her legacy.

The 32-year-old Milwaukee native will put Erin Blanchfield to the test in their UFC Fight Night 246 women’s flyweight co-main event on Saturday at Rogers Place in Edmonton, Alberta. Namajunas steps back into view on the strength of back-to-back victories. She last suited up on July 13, when she outpointed Tracy Cortez to a five-round unanimous decision at UFC on ESPN 59. Namajunas held the women’s strawweight championship from Nov. 4, 2017 to May 11, 2019 and again from April 24, 2021 to May 7, 2022.

As Namajunas approaches her high-stakes showdown with Blanchfield in Canada, a look at five of the many moments that have come to define her:

1. Grounded By Reality

Carla Esparza left nothing to chance when she put away the hyper-aggressive Namajunas with a third-round rear-naked choke to take the inaugural Ultimate Fighting Championship women’s strawweight title in “The Ultimate Fighter 20” Finale headliner on Dec. 12, 2014 at the Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas. “Cookie Monster” sealed it 1:26 into Round 3. A competitive first round gave way to sheer dominance from Esparza. The former Invicta Fighting Championships titleholder struck for repeated takedowns in the second, advanced to full mount and tore into Namajunas with thudding lefts and rights. “Thug Rose” survived but never seemed to recover. Esparza executed another takedown inside the first 15 seconds of Round 3, moved to the back and locked in the choke for the tapout, forever etching her name into the history books.

2. Stranglehold

Namajunas stepped in as a short-notice replacement for Joanne Wood and took care of Paige VanZant with a rear-naked choke in the fifth round of their UFC Fight Night 80 main event on Dec. 10, 2015 at The Cosmopolitan in Las Vegas. The tapout came 2:25 into Round 5. VanZant had no answers for an opponent who was superior to her in every phase. Namajunas secured repeated takedowns, unleashed ferocious elbow-laden ground-and-pound and forced the Team Alpha Male prospect to operate under the constant threat of submission. Bloodied by a cut under the eye, VanZant showed her resolve, as she withstood a rear-naked choke in the third round and two armbars in the fourth. Namajunas was not dissuaded. Midway through Round 5, she scrambled to VanZant’s back and took a choke from which there was no escape.

3. Unexpected Coronation

“Thug Rose” turned the mixed martial arts world upside down when she wiped out Joanna Jedrzejczyk with punches to capture the undisputed women’s strawweight crown in the first round of their UFC 217 co-feature on Nov. 2017 at Madison Square Garden in New York. Jedrzejczyk bowed out 3:03 into Round 1, suffering her first defeat as a professional in a remarkable upset. Namajunas was measured and confident. She got Jedrzejczyk’s attention early, when she floored the off-balance Pole with an overhand right. Moments later, Namajunas decked the champion with a vicious left hook and pounced with follow-up punches until the job was done.

4. Slam Dunk

Jessica Andrade captured the undisputed Ultimate Fighting Championship women’s strawweight title with a slam knockout of “Thug Rose” in the UFC 237 main event on May 11, 2019 at Jeunesse Arena in Rio de Janeiro. Namajunas surrendered her grip on the 115-pound throne 2:58 into Round 2 before a ravenous crowd of 15,193. She floored Andrade with a first-round knee strike, fed her an unhealthy diet of jabs, utilized superior footwork and generally outstruck the Parana Vale Tudo standout across seven-plus minutes of a thrilling encounter. The tide shifted in Round 2 and did so dramatically. Andrade bullied the champion to the fence, executed a high-crotch lift—a maneuver she had attempted on two prior occasions—and slammed her headfirst into the canvas. The impact separated the Milwaukee native from her faculties and made Andrade the UFC’s fourth strawweight champion.

5. Kick Down the Door

Namajunas laid claim to the undisputed women’s strawweight title for a second time when she cut down Weili Zhang with a head kick in the first round of their UFC 261 co-headliner on April 24, 2021 at Vystar Veterans Memorial Arena in Jacksonville, Florida. The end came 1:18 into Round 1. Namajunas’ execution could not have been better. She feinted a low kick with her lead leg, then fired the head kick upstairs with the same leg and found the intended target. The impact of the blow dropped Zhang where she stood, the back of her head bouncing off the canvas. Namajunas pounced with a few follow-up punches before the stoppage was called. It was Zhang’s first loss in more than seven years.