Rose Namajunas vs Carla Esparza Rematch Set After 7 Years at UFC 274
Rose Namajunas and Carla Esparza will clash for the second time after a gap of 7 years for the women’s strawweight title.
Strawweight Champion Namajunas will defend the title against Esparza in the co-main event of UFC 274 on May 7. The bout was confirmed by Sports Illustrated.
Esparza and Namajunas fought in the first-ever UFC strawweight title fight back in December 2014. Esparza won that bout to become the first women’s strawweight champion in UFC. However, she lost it in her next match to Joanna Jędrzejczyk three months later. Esparza underwent shoulder surgery in mid-2015 and did not return until April 2016, and never got another shot at the title.
Namajunas became the first person to defeat Joanna Jędrzejczyk to win the Strawweight title in November 2017 at UFC 217. Later, Namajunas lost the title to Jéssica Andrade in 2019. Namajunas won the title again in April 2021 from Zhang Weili before defending it successfully in November 2021.
Esparza has been on 5 fights winning streak dating back to April 2019. Her victims include Virna Jandiroba, Alexa Grasso, Michelle Waterson, Marina Rodriguez and Yan Xiaonan. Namajunas has also won her last three fights, beating Jéssica Andrade and Zhang Weili twice.
UFC 274 airs from Footprint Center in Pheoniz, AZ in May 7, 2022. Charles Oliveira vs Justin Gaethje bout for Lightwieght title will headline the event.
