Rose Namajunas feels closer to a 125-pound title opportunity with her victory over Tracy Cortez.
Namajunas and Cortez went toe-to-toe in the main event of UFC Denver this past Saturday night. “Thug” Rose clipped and dropped Cortez early in the fight. It was clear that Namajunas was outgunning Cortez on the feet and even utilized some wrestling of her own to show she is simply more well-rounded.
Ultimately, it was Namajunas who walked away with the unanimous decision victory.
RELATED: PROS REACT AFTER ROSE NAMAJUNAS DEFEATS TRACY CORTEZ AT UFC DENVER
Rose Namajunas’ Journey to UFC Flyweight Gold Continues
Rose Namajunas has already been the UFC Women’s Strawweight Champion twice, but she’s now looking to capture gold at flyweight. During the UFC Denver post-fight press conference, “Thug” Rose admitted that despite her experience, there are still areas of her game she can work on (h/t MMAJunkie.com).
“It’s just taken a while for me with all the stuff we had worked on, you know, it’s just building blocks, and I had to build my momentum to get to this point,” Namajunas said. “Now my shoulders feel really good. My right one still aches sometimes. I’ve just got to let it fully heal. I think it’s just going to keep getting better and there’s a lot to improve on, still.”
Rose believes her performance against Cortez has pushed her closer to achieving her gold of winning UFC gold in two weight classes.
“100 percent (I think I moved closed to a title shot),” Namajunas said. “All that matters is winning, right? So, here we go.”
Cortez wasn’t Namajunas’ original opponent for UFC Denver. Rose was expecting to meet Maycee Barber instead. Barber ended up suffering an injury.
If the UFC wishes to rebook the fight, Namajunas is game.
“When (Barber) feels better maybe we can talk about it, but ultimately I’m just forward-thinking right now.”
