UFC President Dana White confirms Rose Namajunas will not receive an immediate rematch with Carla Esparza

Dana White has revealed who Carla Esparza will face in her first title defense.

At UFC 274, Esparza edged out Rose Namajunas in a lackluster fight to become the new strawweight champ. Although the fight was a boring one, some thought ‘Thug’ had done enough to warrant an immediate rematch, but White says that won’t happen. Instead, he revealed to MMA Underground that the winner of Weili Zhang vs. Joanna Jedrzejczyk 2 will get the next title shot.

“This would definitely be that whoever wins this will definitely fight Esparza for the title,” White said.

The news surprised some people due to the fact many thought Marina Rodriguez deserved a title shot. However, White says timing is everything and unfortunately this fight is happening and the plan is for Esparza to face the winner of Zhang-Jedrzejczyk.

“She’s right there,” White said. “These things happen. Timing is everything.”

If Joanna Jedrzejczyk gets past Weili Zhang on Saturday at UFC 275, it would set up a rematch between her and Carla Esparza. Of course, the two fought back at UFC 185 as Esparza was looking to defend her belt for the first time but the Pole won by second-round TKO to become the new champ.

If it’s Zhang that wins, the fight between her and Esparza would be a fresh matchup. It would also be an intriguing scrap as Zhang would look to reclaim her belt and prove she is the best strawweight.

As for Rose Namajunas and Marina Rodriguez, it’s uncertain what will be next for either of them after Dana White’s comments on Tuesday. Perhaps the promotion looks to book a fight between those two as both look to get a title shot in the stacked strawweight division.

Are you surprised by Dana White’s comments that the winner of Zhang-Jedrzejczyk will get the next title shot?