A new rivalry in mixed martial arts (MMA) is slowly creeping out of the shadows and into the limelight, as strawweight champion Joanna Jedrzejczyk and top contender Claudia Gadelha have been at each other’s throats every chance they get.
In fact, Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) president Dana White recently revealed the talented ladies were involved in a “full-blown fist fight” on the set of The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) 23, where they’re serving as opposing coaches.
But as Gadelha told Combate (via Bloody Elbow), Joanna isn’t one to talk trash. Not because she doesn’t want to, but rather because she is too “stupid” to offer up rebuttals when someone stands up to her.
Unlike Conor McGregor — who Claudia labeled a “very intelligent” person — Joanna isn’t very good with words.
“Conor McGregor is very intelligent. He knows what he’s talking about. If you tell him something, he will fire back. Joanna is not like that. She’s stupid. She tried to tease me the whole season, but I just ignored her. She tried to get in my head, but I think I got inside her head. She started out trash talking and trying to intimidate me, but whenever I replied, she would just stay quiet, she didn’t know what to say. You’ll see. She stopped trash talking midway through the season.”
It’s safe to say no one is on Conor’s level when it comes to the art of talking smack.
The two talented ladies initially squared off at UFC on FOX 13 back in 2014, which saw “JJ” walk away with a controversial split decision win. Joanna went on to capture the 115-pound title soon thereafter, then notched two consecutive title defenses.
They will go at it one more time, as they are set to headline TUF 23 Finale on July 8, 2016 in Las Vegas, Nevada, in a much-anticipated strawweight title fight.
For more on that event click here.