UFC 251- Rose Namajunas secures a hard-fought split decision win
UFC 251 saw an important rematch when the two former straw-weight champions, Rose Namajunas and Jessica Andrade clashed in the second fight on the main card. This was a very important fight for the division as the winner would most probably fight for the title in the coming months.
Jessica Andrade entered the fight having lost an upset fight to the current division champion, Weili Zhang back in August 2019. Before this Jessica Andrade was on an impressive four-fight winning streak which included a massive win over her current opponent, Rose Namajunas.
Rose Namajunas, on the other hand, was coming to the cage after a lay off of over a year. Namajunas, before facing Jessica Andrade, had won three consecutive fights which included her massive upset win over the division great, Joanna Jędrzejczyk.
The two were clashing at an important point for the division. Both Namajunas and Andrade are the only two contenders in the division who could make a case for a fight against the current champion Weili Zhang. The rest of the fighters were either injured or simply didn't have resumes strong enough. Hence making the clash even more exciting. The two were expected to deliver a fight of the night.
Rose Namajunas def. Jessica Andrade via Split Decision
The fight was as good as fans expected it to be. The two women clashed in a fight for ages as they traded shots and tried to finish each other off.
The first two rounds saw a bit of a clear lead for Rose Namajunas, who unlike in her last was a bit calmer. Rose Namajunas countered the more explosive Jessica Andrade very well. It was only in the third round did we see Andrade command the fight and take the round in a clear cut fashion. However, that wasn't enough for her to get the win.
With the win Rose Namajunas, improved her record to 10-4 and Jessica Andrade fell to 20-8
Rose Namajunas def. Jessica Andrade via Split Decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)