Jéssica Andrade will receive a second chance at UFC gold as she will reportedly challenge reigning strawweight champion Rose Namajunas at UFC 237 in Brazil scheduled for May 11th. News of the bout was originally reported by ESPN. The reported title defense will put Rose Namajunas dead center in hostile territory and will give Jéssica Andrade the opportunity to become the third female Brazilian to become a UFC champion.
Jessica Andrade’s title shot will have come nearly two years to the day of her previous title shot, which occurred on May 13,, 2017 against Joanna Jędrzejczyk. Following the loss, Andrade proceeded undeterred in her quest to become a UFC champion, taking out Claudia Gadehla, Tecia Torres, and, most recently, Karolina Kowalkiewicz at UFC 228 via first round knockout, a performance that caught the attention of the reigning champion:
“I’ve always had my eye on Jessica Andrade,” Namajunas said earlier this year when addressing her next title opponent. “But let’s just say her last performance definitely changed some things and made a more clear statement about who deserves the next shot.”
Fans have been eager to see Rose Namajunas make her Octagon return, as her last fight was in April against a common opponent to Andrade, former champion Joanna Jędrzejczyk. Namajunas would field more favorable results than her future opponent, defeating Jędrzejczyk for the second consecutive time at the event. This scrap between Namajunas and Andrade has been a long time coming, and 13 months after her last title defense, Namajunas will look to remind the world that she is the new strawweight queen.
UFC 237 takes place on May 11th, 2019 from Brazil in a venue to be determined. There is no word yet on what will be the event’s main event.
What is your early prediction for this strawweight title fight? Will Rose Namajunas successfully defend for the second time? Or will Jessica Andrade cash in on her second chance?
