Rose Namajunas hopes to steal title shot from Manon Fiorot with UFC Edmonton victory: “No doubt that I could be next”

By Josh Evanoff - October 30, 2024

Former UFC women’s strawweight champion Rose Namajunas is back on the hunt for gold.

Rose Namajunas

‘Thug Rose’ has been out of the cage since a clash with Tracy Cortez in July at UFC Denver. That night saw Rose Namajunas hand the rising prospect a unanimous decision defeat. The victory was the former champion’s second in a row, previously defeating Amanda Ribas in March. Now, Namajunas is set to return to the cage in the co-main event of UFC Edmonton on Saturday.

There, the former champion will meet the rising Erin Blanchfield. ‘Cold Blooded’ enters this five-round contest fresh off a unanimous decision loss to Manon Fiorot in March. With that victory, ‘The Beast” seemingly secured a shot at UFC women’s flyweight champ Valentina Shevchenko. However, the bout remains unbooked as of now.

Speaking at UFC Edmonton media day earlier today, Rose Namajunas discussed the state of the division. There, ‘Thug Rose’ admitted she believes Manon Fiorot deserves to face ‘The Bullet’ next. Namajunas referenced the fact that the Frenchwoman defeated her by decision last September, and also defeated her next opponent.

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Rose Namajunas hopes to steal title shot from Manon Fiorot with UFC Edmonton victory

However, Rose Namajunas also hopes to steal a title shot from Manon Fiorot on Saturday. While ‘Thug Rose’ believes the Frenchwoman deserves to face Shevchenko next, she also wouldn’t turn the fight down if the UFC called after Saturday.

“Yeah, I mean, I guess anything is possible. That’s my intention.” Rose Namajunas stated at UFC Edmonton media day, discussing a possible title shot. “To put on a good performance, enough to where there’s no doubt that I could be next. I still, just kind of feel like Manon deserves it next anyways regardless of what I do.”

She continued, “Especially because she technically has a [win] over me… But it is what it is. If she wins the belt, that would be great to fight her again, or even have that dream matchup with Valentina one day. So, I’d be excited to see that fight. But if the UFC wanted to put me ahead of that, with a very spectacular performance, I would be open to that as well.”

What do you make of these comments from Rose Namajunas? Do you believe ‘Thug Rose’ would deserve a title shot with a win on Saturday?

This article appeared first on BJPENN.COM


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