‘Thug’ Rose Makes Flyweight Debut At UFC Paris

Photo by Rick Kern/Getty Images

Rose Namajunas is moving up in the world.
The former UFC strawweight champion will make her flyweight debut against 125-pound veteran Manon Fiorot at the upcoming UFC Paris event on ESPN+,…


2022 Austin Film Festival
Photo by Rick Kern/Getty Images

Rose Namajunas is moving up in the world.

The former UFC strawweight champion will make her flyweight debut against 125-pound veteran Manon Fiorot at the upcoming UFC Paris event on ESPN+, scheduled for Sat., Sept. 2, 2023 at Accor Arena in Paris, France.

That’s according to a report from MMA Junkie.

Namajunas (11-5) has not competed since losing a split decision to longtime rival Carla Esparza at the UFC 274 pay-per-view (PPV) event back in May 2022, a widely-panned performance that cost “Thug” the strawweight title.

Esparza would go on to surrender the strap to Zhang Weili at UFC 281.

Fiorot (10-1) made her Octagon debut at UFC Fight Island 8 by finishing Victoria Leonardo with a second-round technical knockout. The French “Beast” remains undefeated under the UFC banner and is currently ranked No. 2 at 125 pounds.

UFC Paris will be headlined by the heavyweight showdown between former interim champion Ciryl Gane and Moldovan “Polar Bear” Serghei Spivac. Elsewhere on the card, Azamat Murzakanov and Volkan Oezdemir hook ‘em up at 205 pounds.

Stay tuned for more UFC Paris fight card announcements in the coming days.