Carla Esparza believes that the fan reaction to her UFC 274 fight is taking away from her crowning achievement.
Esparza was one-half of what some are calling the most boring title fight in UFC history at UFC 274. She faced Rose Namajunas, who was putting her 115-pound title on the line. Neither woman was very willing to engage in action or press forward. However, Esparza did get a few takedowns, which ultimately won her the fight.
A new champion was crowned via split decision, and Esparza, who was the inaugural 115-pound champion back in 2014, regained the crown.
However, speaking on The MMA Hour this week, Esparza feels the negative fan reaction towards the fight is taking away from the crowning moment.
“I felt the criticism during the fight. I mean, there was boos and the fans weren’t happy with the fight, I knew that. And it’s a bummer… this had the potential to be a great fight; it was such a great story going into it.
“After so many years, I feel like it’s a huge accomplishment to come back, for me, eight years after winning the belt, and having some lows and some highs in the game, and coming back and winning this.
“For me, it’s just such a crowning achievement. I feel like it’s taken a bit away from it, the fan reaction. And I don’t blame the fans for not being happy about the fight. It’s just a bummer that things went down that way.”
Esparza has had a tremendous run going on her path back to the title. Her last loss came in September of 2018 to Tatiana Suarez when she was finished in the third round. Since, she has racked up six-straight wins, her latest being the title victory over Namajunas.
It will be interesting to see if the UFC grants Namajunas an immediate rematch for the title. However, given how poorly their matchup played out this past weekend, it’s highly unlikely.
What do you make of Carla Esparza saying the fan reaction ruins her crowning achievement of recapturing the title?
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