”I’m the owner of this belt and I’ve owned this belt for two years and nine months.” – Joanna Jedrezjczyk
Heading into UFC 217, few felt Joanna Jedrzejczyk’s title reign was in jeopardy. The Polish phenom had been so dominant in her career to that point that Rose Namajunas was simply seen as just another domino she needed to knock over.
A win over Namajunas would have tied Joanna with Ronda Rousey for most consecutive title defenses by a female champion. That’s not what happened, however, and now the former champion is back where she was before 2015. Without a title belt for the first time in years, Joanna says that this upcoming rematch with Rose Namajunas is “bigger than her whole fight career.”
Joanna Jedrzejczyk vs Rose Namajunas II
How a dominant champion reacts to losing can go in a few different directions. Sometimes a champion loses their confidence and fades away. Other times, the loss reinvigorates, motivates, and teaches a fighter how to become better. Joanna is determined to fall into the latter category.
“This is what I’m going to do, I’m going to dedicate this fight to people who fell and they don’t have the power to raise up, but I will show to them that it’s worth it. I will raise up. I raised already, so I will show the people that it’s worth it. It’s worth it to stand up and fight,” Joanna told MMANytt in a recent interview.
Not long after losing to Namajunas at UFC 217, Joanna was quick to blame a difficult weight cut. She fired her nutritional team and diet appears to be playing a bigger role in her fight preparation for April 7th.
Joanna knows her legacy is on the line in this fight. If she wins she regains her title and can once again set about to break UFC championship records. If she loses, it’s not clear what is next for her.
“What I can say is it’s going to be bigger than my whole fight career,” Jedrzejczyk said. “Only one night. Only one fight. It’s going to be bigger than 14 years of my fighting career. Mark my words.”
