Tag: Rose Namajunas

UFC on ESPN 53 weigh-in results: All 26 athletes hit marks, including headliners

Check out the UFC on ESPN 53 weigh-in results from Las Vegas, featuring Amanda Ribas vs. Rose Namajunas.

LAS VEGAS – MMA Junkie was on scene and reporting live from Friday’s official UFC on ESPN 53 (ESPN, ESPN+) fighter weigh-ins at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.

Among those weighing in were [autotag]Amanda Ribas[/autotag] (12-4 MMA, 7-3 UFC) and [autotag]Rose Namajunas[/autotag] (11-6 MMA, 9-5 UFC), who meet in the women’s flyweight main event. Neither woman had any issues hitting their contracted marks.

It was a smooth session overall, with all 26 scheduled athletes making weight inside the two-hour window.

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The full UFC Fight Night 239 weigh-in results include:

MAIN CARD (ESPN, 10 p.m. ET)

  • Amanda Ribas (125.5) vs. Rose Namajunas (125.5)
  • Justin Tafa (264.5) vs. Karl Williams (246.5)
  • AJ Dobson (185.5) vs. Edmen Shahbazyan (186)
  • Cameron Saaiman (135) vs. Payton Talbott (135.5)
  • Billy Quarantillo (145.5) vs. Youssef Zalal (146)
  • Fernando Padilla (145) vs. Luis Pajuelo (145)

PRELIMINARY CARD (7 p.m. ET)

  • Kurt Holobaugh (155.5) vs. Trey Ogden (155.5)
  • Julian Erosa (146) vs. Ricardo Ramos (145.5)
  • Cody Gibson (135.5) vs. Miles Johns (136)
  • Jarno Errens (144.5) vs. Steven Nguyen (145)
  • Montserrat Rendon (135) vs. Darya Zheleznyakova (135.5)
  • Andre Lima (126) vs. Igor Severino (125)
  • Mick Parkin (262.5) vs. Mohammed Usman (237)

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ESPN 53.

UFC on ESPN 53 video: Amanda Ribas, Rose Namajunas make weight in Las Vegas

The main event for the UFC’s latest home show is official after the headliners made weight Friday in Las Vegas.

LAS VEGAS – The main event for the UFC’s latest home show is official after the headliners made weight Friday.

Ahead of UFC on ESPN 53 (ESPN/ESPN+), which takes place Saturday at the UFC Apex, [autotag]Amanda Ribas[/autotag] (12-4 MMA, 7-3 UFC) and former strawweight champion [autotag]Rose Namajunas[/autotag] (11-6 MMA, 9-5 UFC) stepped on the scale for their flyweight bout at the official weigh-ins, both registering at 125.5 pounds.

Check out the video from their trips to the scale above.

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ESPN 53.

UFC free fight: Rose Namajunas avenges KO loss to Jessica Andrade in Fight of the Night

Watch UFC star Rose Namajunas avenge her slam KO loss to Jessica Andrade during a fun Fight of the Night performance in 2020.

[autotag]Rose Namajunas[/autotag] stepped up big in her rematch with Jessica Andrade.

In July 2020 at UFC 251, Namajunas avenged arguably her biggest career defeat but when she put on a technical performance in a fun Fight of the Night bout against Andrade. Namajunas was viciously knocked out by the Brazilian to lose her UFC women’s strawweight title the year prior, but out-struck Andrade over the course of 15 minutes and survived some tough moments to win a split decision.

You can watch Namajunas’ win over Andrade in their rematch in the video above.

Namajunas (11-6 MMA, 9-5 UFC) returns to the cage Saturday in the main event of UFC on ESPN 53 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. She takes on Amanda Ribas (12-4 MMA, 7-3 UFC) in a five-round, women’s flyweight bout.

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ESPN 53.

John McCarthy: Rose Namajunas doesn’t seem ‘energized by the fight game’ before UFC on ESPN 53

John McCarthy questions Rose Namajunas’ motivation ahead of UFC on ESPN 53.

[autotag]John McCarthy[/autotag] questions [autotag]Rose Namajunas[/autotag]’ motivation ahead of UFC on ESPN 53.

Namajunas (11-6 MMA, 9-5 UFC) meets Amanda Ribas (12-4 MMA, 7-3 UFC) in Saturday’s main event at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.

McCarthy thinks former two-time UFC strawweight champion Namajunas shouldn’t have moved up to flyweight, where she fell short in her divisional debut to Manon Fiorot this past September. McCarthy doesn’t see the same passion in Namajunas anymore.

“The real question is, does she really want to be doing this anymore?,” McCarthy said on the Weighing In podcast. “Because we always say, look, if you’re not 100 percent in, get out. It just doesn’t seem like she’s energized by the fight game. It doesn’t seem to be something that that’s where she wants to be. It’s just something that she’s good at. I don’t know.”

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His co-host, former UFC lightweight Josh Thomson, thinks it’s a matter of opponent that will fuel Namajunas.

“We’ve had fighters on here before and they’ve talked about you need to find the right fight to motivates you,” Thomson said. “She needs to find the right person that motivates her, that gets her inside that cage and gets her going. Joanna did it. Weili did it. Jessica Andrade did it. I mean, like, certain fighters seem to motivate her, and she had her best performances against those fighters.”

Namajunas’ statements during Wednesday’s media day say otherwise. “Thug Rose” said her loss to Fiorot motivated her more, as she looks to claim a title in a second division.

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ESPN 53.

UFC on ESPN 53 breakdown: Can Amanda Ribas top two-time champ Rose Namajunas?

MMA Junkie analyst Dan Tom takes a look at the UFC on ESPN 53 main event between Amanda Ribas and former champ Rose Namajunas.

MMA Junkie analyst Dan Tom breaks down the UFC’s top bouts. Today, we look at the main event for UFC on ESPN 53.

UFC on ESPN 53 (ESPN/ESPN+) takes place Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.

Rose Namajunas, Amanda Ribas predict UFC on ESPN 54 headliner Erin Blanchfield vs. Manon Fiorot

Rose Namajunas and Amanda Ribas gave their takes on the upcoming UFC on ESPN 54 headliner.

[autotag]Rose Namajunas[/autotag] and [autotag]Amanda Ribas[/autotag] have revealed their predictions for the upcoming UFC on ESPN 54 main event.

Former two-time strawweight champion Namajunas (11-6 MMA, 9-5 UFC) meets Ribas (12-4 MMA, 7-3 UFC) in Saturday’s UFC on ESPN 53 (ESPN/ESPN+) main event at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. One week later, [autotag]Erin Blanchfield[/autotag] and [autotag]Manon Fiorot[/autotag] squares off in a pivotal five-round No. 1 contender bout in Atlantic City, N.J.

Namajunas, whose most recent setback came as a unanimous decision to Fiorot (11-1 MMA, 6-0 UFC) in September, thinks Blanchfield’s (12-1 MMA, 6-0 UFC) pace will be too much.

“I’m kind of leaning towards Erin,” Namajunas told MMA Junkie and other reporters at pre-fight news conference Wednesday. “I wouldn’t be surprised if Manon finds a way to win. She’s very good, and she’s a very interesting matchup for Erin, but I just feel like the pace Erin puts out, she impressed me with that.

“Her tenacity, and she also really knows how to find ways to win. I just think with our fight with Manon, she was kind of fading away at the end, and I think Erin is going to keep growing. I believe it’s five rounds so, she’ll probably account for that. But I’m leaning towards Erin in this one.”

Ribas had an opposing opinion, though tentatively presented.

“Good question,” Ribas said. “I think Manon.”

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ESPN 53.

Rose Namajunas fueled by flyweight debut loss ahead of UFC on ESPN 53: ‘It just motivated me so much more’

Rose Namajunas opens up about her loss to Manon Fiorot ahead of her return at Saturday’s UFC on ESPN 53.

LAS VEGAS – [autotag]Rose Namajunas[/autotag] is ready to snap her current losing streak and return to her winning ways.

The former UFC women’s strawweight champion is still in search of her first victory at 125 pounds after having lost a unanimous decision against Manon Fiorot in her divisional debut back in September. Although it was a setback for Namajunas (11-6 MMA, 9-5 UFC), she’s been using the defeat as fuel for her 2024 campaign to the UFC women’s flyweight title.

“After the Manon fight, I had to heal my pinky and that happened, but as soon as the fight was over I was like, ‘Man, that was so close. I could’ve won that fight if it was a little different here and there,'” Namajunas said. “Whatever. Would’ve, should’ve, could’ve. I just had that taste of, ‘Man,’ I usually get down on myself after a loss, but it just motivated me so much more.

“I knew after the fight I wanted to get right back in there, but I had to heal my pinky and I had some personal stuff to figure out. It took me a little bit to kind of get those things in order, but as soon as I was ready, I was looking for a fight. I got offered a little earlier for this fight, but I wasn’t ready, but then I got offered March 23, and I was like, ‘Yeah, that’s perfect.'”

Namajunas returns to the cage this Saturday in the main event of UFC on ESPN 53, which goes down at the UFC Apex. She takes on Amanda Ribas (12-4 MMA, 7-3 UFC) in a five-round, flyweight bout.

Namajunas likes the matchup and the challenges that Ribas presents. Not only is she excited to fight for her first win at 25 pounds, but the actual fight itself has her eager for her return.

“Just excitement because of how she fights, her energy, her skills, the fact that she’s top 10,” Namajunas said. “For some reason, I’m not ranked or whatever, even though I am pound-for-pound ranked. It’s super strange. I never paid attention to the rankings, but now I’m like, ‘It be nice to be ranked.’ So yeah, all those things combined make me excited to hear that name, but I was ready for anybody. I didn’t care who popped up.”

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ESPN 53.

Rose Namajunas doubts strawweight return, eyes UFC women’s flyweight title in 2024

Rose Namajunas plans to stick around 125 pounds, despite her success at strawweight.

LAS VEGAS – It looks like [autotag]Rose Namajunas[/autotag] is sticking around the UFC women’s flyweight division.

Despite her success as a two-time champion at 115 pounds, and a loss in her debut at 125, Namajunas (11-6 MMA, 9-5 UFC) doesn’t see herself going back down and has set her sights on winning the title at flyweight in 2024.

“Becoming a two-division champion this year would be awesome,” Namajunas said at Wednesday’s UFC on ESPN 53 media day. “I know that’s a very steep mountain to climb, and I know I’ve had some setbacks and I have to be realistic, but I do believe that’s very realistic. God willing, that’s going to happen. I just have to take care of business this weekend, and that’s what we’ll do.”

Namajunas returns to the octagon Saturday against Amanda Ribas (12-4 MMA, 7-3 UFC) in the UFC on ESPN 53 main event. She’s looking to rebound from a loss to top contender Manon Fiorot in her flyweight debut this past September in Paris.

Although things didn’t go her way, Namajunas insists 125 is a much better home for her career.

“I just think health wise, it’s not a healthy thing for me to (drop to 115 pounds) at this point,” Namajunas said. “I know that I can keep pushing through it. I know my mind got a lot stronger with cutting the weight. But I can tell my body was not liking it as much.

“I could tell from my last strawweight cut: My eyes were sunken in, and it’s kind of hard to see myself like that. … I’m all about health and wellness. I’m all about preserving health as much as possible.”

Check out Namajunas’ full media day interview in the video above.

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ESPN 53.

Report: Oscar winner Lupita Nyong’o, Chloe Grace Moretz play UFC fighters in Rose Namajunas-attached ‘Strawweight’

The combat sports world has another MMA movie to look forward to down the road.

The combat sports world has another MMA movie to look forward to down the road.

According to Variety, “Strawweight” will be a full-length feature film starring Oscar winner Lupita Nyong’o and Chloe Grace Moretz, and former UFC women’s strawweight champion [autotag]Rose Namajunas[/autotag] is on board as a fight consultant and executive producer.

According to Variety, the film “follows the journeys of two fighters who find themselves competing against each other in the Octagon. One is a young woman (Moretz) whose life is changed forever when she discovers her passion for the UFC, while the other is a former champion (Nyong’o) who is determined to reclaim her title by reinventing herself. Both want the same thing — respect — but only one can come out on top.”

Nyong’o, 40, crossed over to major recognition in early 2014 when she took home the Best Supporting Actress Oscar for “12 Years a Slave.” She’s been regarded as one of the industry’s best working actor’s since then and has major places in the character universes for both Star Wars and Marvel via “Black Panther.” She’s also been honored by the Emmys, the Screen Actors Guild Awards, the Independent Spirit Awards and dozens of others and is a Tony nominee.

Moretz, who just turned 27, is no stranger to physical work. Her role as anti-hero superhero Hit-Girl in the “Kick-Ass” franchise arguably was her big break. Her resume also includes “500 Days of Summer, “Diary of a Wimpy Kid,” “Hugo” with director Martin Scorsese, “Dark Shadows” with director Tim Burton, and “The Equalizer.”

Namajunas won the strawweight title in August 2017 with an upset knockout of Joanna Jedrzejczyk. She retained the belt in a rematch, but lost it to Jessica Andrade in May 2019. After more than a year off, Namajunas returned and beat Andrade in a rematch, though it was after Andrade lost the belt to Weili Zhang. Namajunas recaptured the title against Zhang in April 2021 and beat her in rematch, but lost the belt to Carla Esparza a little less than two years ago. Namajunas moved to flyweight this past fall, but dropped a decision to Manon Fiorot.

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Photos: All-time UFC women’s champions

Take a look at the history of females who have claimed UFC gold.

From the first-ever UFC women’s champion, Ronda Rousey, to the current crop of titleholders, here’s a look at the females who have captured UFC gold since women first step foot in the octagon in 2013.