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Rose Namajunas has her first win as a UFC flyweight out of the way in which. A second one might propel her again into championship territory.
There are not any scarcity of potential opponents for Namajunas, who earned a unanimous decision win over Amanda Ribas in Saturday’s UFC Vegas 89 major occasion. Namajunas brings loads of cachet to any matchup, given her historical past as a two-time strawweight champion, however she doubtless wants a win over a top-5 contender to earn a title shot at 125 kilos.
Namajunas talked about the names of some contenders following her newest win, with Maycee Barber being one which drew specific curiosity.
“I believe she’s a savage,” Namajunas mentioned on the UFC Vegas 89 post-fight press conference when requested why she want to battle Barber. “She’s an enormous lady, she’s robust, she’s only a bully in there. I knew her when she was actually younger, and she or he’s loads totally different now. She used to form of name me out again when she was youthful and issues like that – I believe it’s form of humorous. However she’s actually powerful, and that will positively inspire me and get me going day by day, as a result of I do know she throws with actually unhealthy intentions.
“However anyone else is cool, too. Erin Blanchfield, Manon [Fiorot], title [shot], don’t matter.”
Barber has been on a sizzling streak since a loss to future champion Alexa Grasso, having gained six straight fights. Most not too long ago, she knocked off perennial contender Katlyn Cerminara at UFC 299 to place herself into place for a No. 1 contender’s battle.
At the moment, Grasso and former champion Valentina Shevchenko are scheduled to educate the upcoming season of The Final Fighter 32, which leaves them on the sidelines for the foreseeable future and the flyweight title image in limbo.
Although Namajunas misplaced to Manon Fiorot in her flyweight debut, her spectacular run at strawweight made her one of many UFC’s hottest fighters, and she or he’s high-quality with capitalizing on her notoriety if the matchmakers need to quick observe her to a championship battle.
“I believe that positively in the event that they need to give me a title shot, I’m very happy to do this,” Namajunas mentioned. “I misplaced to Manon Fiorot and she or he’s preventing Erin Blanchfield and she or he was calling for a title shot, so I understand how issues work and I do know that you just’ve acquired to earn issues. Had issues gone a bit of bit totally different of a approach [against Manon] I in all probability would have been in that title shot after Manon.
“It was form of bizarre not being ranked too. Can I simply get ranked now? So I believe that simply form of threw me off a bit of bit. But it surely was form of cool and I used to be completely happy to simply—As a substitute of simply being the champ after which leaping straight right into a superfight, champ vs. champ, go up a weight class, I believe it’s form of cool to simply work your approach up and do it that approach. I believe changing into the champ this manner can be far more spectacular for my part, however on the similar time in the event that they need to give me that, I’ll take it.”
Namajunas is at present No. 14 in MMA Fighting’s Pound-for-Pound Rankings and may count on to have a quantity subsequent to her identify within the UFC’s official rankings after getting previous Ribas. “Thug Rose” was ready to make use of her grappling to win parts of her battle towards Ribas, however she admitted that she’s nonetheless adjusting to competing in a heavier weight class.
“I felt really fairly good,” Namajunas mentioned. “There was some issues to work on. I wasn’t as fast as I wished, like as snappy as I wished to be, however my arms are a bit of larger, however I additionally might really feel my power was nice. I believe all people thinks that I’m small or weak or one thing like that, so it’s simply good to get higher on the grappling side of issues and simply form of maintain all of my abilities up at a excessive degree, no weak point anyplace.”
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