Ahead of next month’s PPV event in Singapore, with two championship fights and a highly-anticipated title eliminator at strawweight, the six headline fighters spoke on a virtual press conference with a variety of answers – from what’s to come for them respectively in June and potentially beyond, like double-champ status and one fighter eyeing another title rematch. Continue reading
Tag: Carla Esparza
UFC Vegas 52: Andrade earns historic sub win over Lemos on return to strawweight division
After falling short against Valentina Shevchenko in her bid to become a two-weight world champion, the former women’s strawweight titlist headlined a largely forgettable Fight Night card from the Apex on Saturday night and wasted no time: delivering a first-round standing arm-triangle choke win over her Brazilian compatriot, Amanda Lemos on her return to 115lbs. Continue reading
Repeat or revenge? Rose Namajunas vs. Carla Esparza 2 set for UFC 274 co-main event on May 7
Seven-and-a-half years after their first meeting, UFC strawweight champion Rose Namajunas will hope to avenge her submission defeat by former titlist Carla Esparza (#2) as the pair are set for an intriguing rematch in the UFC 274 co-main event, on a night headlined by Namajunas’ teammate Justin Gaethje – attempting to claim lightweight gold vs. Charles Oliveira. Continue reading
UFC Vegas 39: Marina Rodriguez ruins Mackenzie Dern’s showcase night with harsh lesson
Surging strawweight contender Marina Rodriguez has dented two hype trains in 2021, first knocking out Amanda Ribas on Fight Island in January and now outlasting Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt Mackenzie Dern on the scorecards during her second successive main event, after which she stressed a readiness to fight for UFC gold – displays like this make it feel inevitable.
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UFC Vegas 27: Carla Esparza dominates Yan Xiaonan, calls for title shot vs. Rose Namajunas

Armed with five straight victories, it might be difficult to deny Carla Esparza another shot at strawweight gold for much longer after a commanding display like this one…
Continue readingAlexa Grasso motivated, targeting top-10 ranked flyweight opponent next
Nearly three weeks removed from her impressive unanimous decision win over a returning Maycee Barber at last month’s UFC 258 PPV, #10 ranked flyweight Alexa Grasso is motivated and itching to get back into the Octagon before long – with sights set on facing another oppponent above her in the rankings as she continues her promising ascent in a new division. Continue reading
UFC 256: Petr Yan to face Aljamain Sterling in first bantamweight title defence
At long last, bantamweight challenger Aljamain Sterling gets his wish. After watching Cory Sandhagen flatten previously top-ranked contender Marlon Moraes on Saturday night, the 31-year-old will now face Petr Yan in the Russian’s first title defence at UFC 256 on December 12. Continue reading
UFC 256: Usman-Burns to be rescheduled again, so what’s next?
After recent news confirmed UFC 256 will not feature Kamaru Usman’s scheduled welterweight title defence against #1 contender Gilbert Burns – a fight once again postponed for a later date – it now begs the question: what’s next for 2020’s final PPV card on December 12? Continue reading
UFC on ESPN 14: Robert Whittaker returns with gritty win over Darren Till
#1 middleweight contender Robert Whittaker returned after a nine-month absence, earning a difficult but important decision victory over Darren Till in tonight’s main event. There were also statement wins for Fabricio Werdum and Carla Esparza among others.
UFC 249: Henry Cejudo, Justin Gaethje record memorable championship wins
Henry Cejudo retained his bantamweight title vs. Dominick Cruz and announced his plans to retire post-fight, before Justin Gaethje snapped Tony Ferguson’s 12-fight winning streak with a brilliant R5 TKO victory in the UFC 249 main event – earning the interim lightweight belt.