Joanna Jedrzejczyk and Claudia Gadelha are set to coach The Ultimate Fighter 23 and will square off for the second time at the Finale in July, this time with the women’s strawweight belt on the line.
After weeks of reports, UFC women’s strawweight champion Joanna Jedrzejczyk and top contender Claudia Gadelha are set to coach The Ultimate Fighter 23 and will also square off in the main event of the Finale in July in a highly anticipated rematch. The news was officially announced on Sunday’s UFC Fight Night 81 broadcast.
Jedrzejczyk (11-0) and Gadelha (13-1) fought on the preliminary card of UFC on FOX 13 in December 2014 and the Polish-native won a somewhat controversial split decision. Since then, she has won the belt with a TKO over Carla Esparza and defended it twice against Jessica Penne and most recently Valerie Letourneau.
Gadelha has only fought once since her meeting with the current champion, which was last August at UFC 190. She welcomed Jessica Aguilar to the Octagon and dominated the fight, which ended by unanimous decision.
TUF 23 debuts on FOX Sports 1 on April 20 and will feature male light heavyweights and female strawweights.
The TUF 23 Finale takes place live from Las Vegas on July 8, a day before UFC 200. No other fights have been confirmed for the card.