Rose Namajunas

Carla Esparza beat Rose Namajunas for the UFC strawweight title in a fight where very little happened across five rounds.

Ultimately, Esparza, 34, moved to 2-0 over Namajunas -- and it's unclear whether the sport would even allow a third matchup to happen. It was a fight in which neither woman appeared to have any confidence in her skill set. A third had it for Namajunas 48-47.

See the top Twitter reactions to Carla Esparza's title-winning upset of Rose Namajunas in the UFC 274 co-main event.

Rose Namajunas lost her women's strawweight title in the UFC 274 co-main event rematch against former champion Carla Esparza on Saturday.

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In the co-main event of UFC 274 we saw a rematch of the very first strawweight title fight in the promotion's history. The champion "Thug"...

Namajunas lands a couple of nice strikes but then Esparza gets in and slams her to the ground. Esparza gets in and gets shrugged off but lands a nice kick to the body. Nice connection from Namajunas and then she lands a 1-2, but it wasn’t super clean. Namajunas lands a nice right hand over the top. Entering the final round at UFC 274 and whoever wins this round likely wins the fight but who the hell knows. Entering the fourth at UFC 274 and I think Esparza might be a couple of rounds ahead. Esparza tries blitzing but catches a counter from the champion. Nothing lands and Namajunas lands a jab. Namajunas attempts to throw her jab, but it’s Esparza that lands a nice left hook. The second starts and Esparza tries with a 1-2, but doesn’t land. Entering the third at UFC 274 and that might have been the most uneventful two rounds of a title fight in history. Esparza tries a combination, but again, well short of the mark.

Taking a look at the odds, pick, and prediction for the co-main event of UFC 274 between Rose Namajunas and Carla Esparza.

Namajunas is likely to keep the challenger on the outside and keep the strikes coming to keep her there. Esparza has the right game to score the upset and it will have to be seen if she can get it done. Rose Namajunas will look to keep things on the feet and establish her range early. She has all of the tools to win on the feet, she’ll need to avoid letting the fight hit the ground where Esparza is at her best. Obviously, the two fighters have evolved but Esparza has the more consistent game and has been on an excellent stretch. Namajunas is comfortable on the ground but she’ll look to keep things on the feet where she has a clear advantage.

UFC strawweight champion Rose Namajunas (11-5) and Carla Esparza (19-6) met in a rematch in the co-main event of UFC 274 more than seven years after their first ...

Rose up and turns and reverses and they’re up and Rose lands a right hand. Carla comes in with punches and Rose lands a big right. Rose lands a glancing left and then a right. Carla charges in and Rose swings back and Carla drops a takedown and gets it but Rose is immediately back up. Steps in for a right hand that lands and now Carla shoots a takedown and has the back with Rose sitting. Rose still trying to draw Carla in to counter, but Carla not biting. And Rose lands a left. Rose throws big and misses, and Carla clinches. She gets in on it but Rose shucks it off and we’re back to the dance. Carla now stepping in a little more and lands a left hand with Rose looks to counter. Rose keeping the range and Carla content to stay outside. Carla not closing and Rose staying away.

Carla Esparza reclaimed the UFC strawweight title by defeating Rose Namajunas at UFC 274 at Footprint Center in Phoenix.

On the other end, Namajunas’ second title reign and three-fight win streak come to an end. Esparza ran up a five-fight win streak over Virna Jandriroba, Alexa Grasso, Michelle Waterson, Marina Rodriguez, and Yan Xiaonan to earn another crack at gold, and walked away with her goal accomplished. The dissenting judge, Eric Colon saw the bout for Namajunas with a score of 48-47. Esparza completed a takedown in the fourth round and took the back of Namajunas for the most significant moment of the fight up to that point. Esparza looked for a takedown early in the second, but Namajunas kept things standing. A few strikes were offered from both, but virtually nothing of significance landed in the first three minutes.

One week before her wedding, Esparza edged strawweight champion Rose Namajunas via split decision in the UFC 274 co-main event inside Footprint Center to win ...

Namajunas, fresh off a split-decision win over former champion Weilei Zhang in November, said Esparza was the only fight that made sense, liking weighing merit and revenge. After the first round, each fighter had connected on three strikes. By the end of the fight, Namajunas had outstruck Esparza 30-23, with the advantage coming largely in the final round.

Carla Esparza defeated Rose Namajuna via split decision (47-48, 49-46, 48-47) at UFC 274 on Saturday, May 7, 2022, live from the Footprint Center in ...

Esparza landed a takedown but Namajunas got right back to her feet and landed a strike. Namajunas landed a strong right but Esparza went for another takedown. Namajunas landed a shot on the break. Esparza landed a leg kick and a knee to the body. Namajunas was able to escape the takedown. The second was off to the same slow start until Esparza went for the takedown.