UFC president Dana White gave his typical post-fight thoughts to UFC on FOX 24 this past weekend after the conclusion of the event. The card featured Demetrious Johnson successfully defending his flyweight title against Wilson Reis, tying Anderson Silva’s all-time UFC record at 10. “Mighty Mouse” has systematically picked apart each of his last several […]
UFC president Dana White gave his typical post-fight thoughts to UFC on FOX 24 this past weekend after the conclusion of the event. The card featured Demetrious Johnson successfully defending his flyweight title against Wilson Reis, tying Anderson Silva’s all-time UFC record at 10. “Mighty Mouse” has systematically picked apart each of his last several […]
UFC on Fox 24 showcased once again why Demetrious Johnson has clearly earned the right of being dubbed the greatest pound for pound fighter in the world. His victory over Wilson Reis may not have shocked many in terms of the ultimate result, but the manner in which Johnson got the job done was nothing short of eye opening. Reis, while competitive in the opening frame, was ultimately dominated in the second and third rounds. I’ve got more to say about Johnson in a future article, but for now let’s focus on the other stars of UFC on Fox 24, namely Rose Namajunas and Robert Whittaker.
UFC on Fox 24 showcased once again why Demetrious Johnson has clearly earned the right of being dubbed the greatest pound for pound fighter in the world. His victory over Wilson Reis may not have shocked many in terms of the ultimate result, but the manner in which Johnson got the job done was nothing short of eye opening. Reis, while competitive in the opening frame, was ultimately dominated in the second and third rounds. I’ve got more to say about Johnson in a future article, but for now let’s focus on the other stars of UFC on Fox 24, namely Rose Namajunas and Robert Whittaker.
What Rose Namajunas was able to pull off in her victory over Michelle Waterson was nothing short of amazing. Both women were competitive in the co-main event, but it was Namajunas that would make the necessary adjustments to pull off the victory. Waterson utilized her side kick brilliantly but found herself in trouble after executed a head and arm throw, the most overused and dangerous technique in women’s MMA, and eventually found herself on the bottom of Namajunas. Rose would win the first frame handily but it’s what happened in the second round that had me most impressed.
Waterson’s side kicks were landing to Namajunas’ knee with continual thudding impact. Understanding this, Rose made a slight adjustment. Waterson was firing her kicks from a southpaw side stance. ‘The Karate Hottie’ made a fatal mistake by faking the kick with a chambered right leg but not resetting quickly. As Waterson lazily placed her right foot down to the mat, Namajunas shifted to her left, obtaining a strong outside angle, and launching a right high kick that floored her foe. From there it was a matter of some strong ground and pound, superior positioning and a deep rear naked choke. You’ve gotta think that Rose Namajunas is most likely going to be the next challenger for the strawweight belt.
Robert Whittaker also made a huge impression with his victory over Ronaldo ‘Jacare’ Souza. What was perhaps most impressive about this one was how patient Robert Whittaker has become. No longer the slugging, overly aggressive striker that he once was, Whittaker has been able to adopt a far more strategic approach to his striking as of late. His karate background showed in this bout as he bounced on his toes, light on his feet, and shifting in and out with punches. But what was most impressive was his ability to feint and keep Jacare guessing with every exchange. Jacare had some success with his right hand and even landed a takedown, but he would eventually succumb to the two things that make Whittaker dangerous.
One, Whittaker feints a ton and every real strike he throws is done so with variety while appearing to seem like the same movement. His punches are tight and his elbows always stay tucked in towards the centerline. That makes it difficult for the opponent to see if he’s going to launch a jab or a hook with his left hand, a straight cross or an uppercut with his right. Whittaker was utilizing his jabs to get a read on what Jacare would counter back with, then, once he was comfortable with the timing, exploded forward with a sharp right cross. From there we saw the young middleweight land a variety of strikes including that rear uppercut and a high right kick that nearly shut off Jacare’s lights. Some follow ground and pound and an oddly timed stoppage later and you’ve got your next big middleweight contender. Since things are so log jammed at the top of the division however, it’s likely that Whittaker will have to wait for a title shot. That means he’ll have the distinct pleasure of facing off with either former champ Luke Rockhold or the terrifying Yoel Romero. That’s like picking your poison where those match ups are concerned.
What should come next for the new contenders at UFC on Fox 24?
Jonathan Salmon is a writer, martial arts instructor, and geek culture enthusiast. Check out his Twitter and Facebook to keep up with his antics.
UFC on Fox 24 from Kansas City saw Demetrious Johnson do his thing.
That thing was styling all over another poor flyweight soul, Wilson Reis, and defending his title for a record-tying 10th time. It was another stellar performance from an all-time grea…
That thing was styling all over another poor flyweight soul, Wilson Reis, and defending his title for a record-tying 10th time. It was another stellar performance from an all-time great.
In the co-main event Saturday, Rose Namajunas knocked down and choked out Michelle Waterson. Entering the event, most of the media buzz was surrounding Waterson, who had signed with WME-IMG agents. Namajunas put a swift end to that ride for the UFC’s owners.
Those were just the two highlights at the top of the card. As always we wonder what’s next for the winners and losers.
Well, let’s find out. Here’s a look at the matches to make for each participant on the UFC on Fox 24 fight card.
Rose Namajunas might not look like it, but once the Octagon door closes, she loves going all “Thug” on her opponent. Namajunas did just that Saturday night at UFC on FOX 24, dominating Michelle Waterson for her fourth since in her last five fights. “I was cool standing with her. In her last fight, she […]
Rose Namajunas might not look like it, but once the Octagon door closes, she loves going all “Thug” on her opponent. Namajunas did just that Saturday night at UFC on FOX 24, dominating Michelle Waterson for her fourth since in her last five fights. “I was cool standing with her. In her last fight, she […]
Perhaps the most impressive thing about Rose Namajunas is that she doesn’t seem to have reached her full potential as a mixed martial artist.
Second-most impressive is Namajunas is already damn good—and could easily fight another 10 years before …
Perhaps the most impressive thing about Rose Namajunas is that she doesn’t seem to have reached her full potential as a mixed martial artist.
Second-most impressive is Namajunas is already damn good—and could easily fight another 10 years before the final verdict is rendered on her legacy.
Yet Namajunas looked as close to a finished product as we’ve seen her inside the Octagon on Saturday, when she dropped Michelle Waterson with a high kick and finished her with a rear-naked choke in the second round of their co-main event fight at UFC on Fox 24.
The victory has Namajunas waiting in the wings to make a second run at the women’s 115-pound title, perhaps as early as this summer.
“I think this win puts me right up there in title contention,” she told UFC color commentator Brian Stann in the cage after the bout. “Whoever wins the belt, I’m fighting.”
Champion Joanna Jedrzejczyk is expected to defend her crown against Jessica Andrade at UFC 211 on May 13. After that, Namajunas may well get the call.
The 24-year-old Wisconsin native has only been fighting professionally since 2013 but has already squeezed a lot of living into her modest UFC run.
Namajunas emerged as the most hyped contestant from season 20 of The Ultimate Fighter in the fall of 2014 but lost the fight company’s inaugural strawweight title fight to Carla Esparza in December of that year.
The defeat cooled some of the red-hot expectations she garnered while appearing on the reality television show, which was set up to crown a champion in the UFC’s newest weight class.
At the time, UFC President Dana White said he thought the TUF 20 cast might include the next Ronda Rousey, and it was largely believed he was referring to Namajunas. Rousey herself called the rookie fighter “gorgeous and charismatic” and said that Namajunas had “all the tools to be the next really influential champion,” per MMA Fighting’s Guilherme Cruz.
All that set Namajunas up to be a meaningful figure in the fledgling strawweight division, which still needs all the engaging personalities it can get. She possesses just the right mix of the red-carpet glamour the UFC likes in its female stars and the hard-nosed pragmatism that is easy for hardcore fans to latch on to.
She’s a talented, all-action fighter who has progressively established herself as must-see TV though nine total fights in the UFC and Invicta FC. Plus, her nickname is Thug Rose, for Pete’s sake.
It’s just that results have been mixed at times. Namajunas came into the Waterson fight already No. 4 on the UFC’s 115-pound rankings but has had a couple of hiccups during her UFC run.
After her loss to Esparza, Namajunas put together three straight wins—taking out a trio of well-known names in Angela Hill, Paige VanZant and Tecia Torres. In the co-main event of UFC 201 in July 2016, however, she dropped a split decision to Karolina Kowalkiewicz.
The developing picture of Namajunas, therefore, was as a likable, naturally gifted fighter with near-bottomless potential who was still trying to make all the pieces of her impressive skill set work in concert.
Against Waterson, however, Namajunas authored arguably the most complete performance of her career. Considering it came on network television and against an opponent who was riding her own wave of mild hype, it couldn’t have occurred at a more advantageous time.
The 31-year-old Waterson entered this fight fresh on the heels of her own high-profile victory over VanZant in the main event of UFC on Fox 22 in December. The former Invicta FC atomweight champion moved up to strawweight after coming to the UFC in mid-2015 and had nabbed two consecutive wins on the big stage.
That streak ended against Namajunas.
Both fighters came out of their corners aggressive with their strikes, but early in the first round, Namajunas countered a head-and-arm throw by taking Waterson’s back. From there, she worked steadily to top position and spent most of the rest of the period in Waterson’s guard, foiling submission attempts and dealing out some occasionally vicious ground-and-pound offense.
As the second stanza began, Namajunas edged further ahead on the scorecards, getting the better of the early striking fluries. The fight-changing exchange came a little over one minute in, when Namajunas countered a pawing right hand from Waterson with a two-punch combo and perfectly placed kick to the face.
Waterson was moving away at the moment of impact, and the kick dropped her to the canvas. Namajunas followed her down and punished the stunned fighter with more of the fast-paced ground-and-pound she’d displayed in the first. As Waterson tried to kick her off and stand up, Namajunas took her back again, this time sinking the choke that forced Waterson to tap.
“The fight couldn’t have gone more perfect for [Namajunas],” White said later, per Fox Sports’ Damon Martin. “I thought she looked incredible tonight, and I agreed with her after the fight—I think she’s ready to challenge for the title.”
So it seems that Namajunas may be on the verge of cashing in on the hype of her early career, albeit a few years after our hopes about her were initially raised.
All that remains is for Jedrzejczyk and Andrade to settle their business.
We also don’t know yet whether new UFC owner WME-IMG will think enough of Namajunas’ potential to reinvest in her. So far during its short tenure in charge of the Octagon, the Hollywood megatalent agency has consistently put women’s MMA front and center.
Namajunas is already clearly among the group of the UFC’s promotable female fighters, though she’ll need to put together a sustained run of success to fulfill her lofty potential. She would no doubt open as the betting underdog against Jedrzejczyk if it goes that way. Then again, who wouldn’t?
For either Andrade or Jedrzejczyk, however, a future title matchup with Namajunas might turn out to be the 115-pound division’s marquee attraction during 2017.
UFC on FOX 24 went down tonight (Saturday, April 15, 2017) from the Sprint Center in Kansas City, MO. The main event featured the top pound-for-pound fighter in MMA, Demetrious “Mighty Mouse” Johnson, attempting to tie Anderson Silva’s consecutive title defense record at 10. Brazilian contender Wilson Reis stood in his way, but not for
UFC on FOX 24 went down tonight (Saturday, April 15, 2017) from the Sprint Center in Kansas City, MO. The main event featured the top pound-for-pound fighter in MMA, Demetrious “Mighty Mouse” Johnson, attempting to tie Anderson Silva’s consecutive title defense record at 10. Brazilian contender Wilson Reis stood in his way, but not for long.
Johnson made it look easy, dancing cirlces around the challenger, battering Reis with kicks and punches. The champion was in control of every phase as Reis struggled to keep up and land anything more than occasional leg kicks. By round three, Reis was spent, and Johnson moved in for the kill. A knee to the body dropped an off-balance Reis and DJ pounced. Ground and pound followed as Johnson advanced to mount, then immediately snatched the fight-ending armbar. When Johnson next steps into the cage, he’ll be trying to break Silva’s long-standing record.
The co-main event was a strawweight contenders scrap between “Thug” Rose Namajunas and Michelle “The Karate Hottie” Waterson. Namajunas walked through Waterson’s kicks on the feet, reveresed a head-and-arm throw to take Waterson’s back in round one, and dropped her foe with a nasty head kick in round two. Waterson recovered to some extent, but “Thug” Rose gave her no room to breathe. Namajunas jumped on Waterson’s back as she tried to stand, and finished it with the choke soon after.
Finally, former welterweight Robert Whittaker announced himself as a potential title challenger in a crowded middleweight division with an emphatic TKO over top contender Jacare Souza. The Brazilian failed to get the fight into his wheelhouse on the ground, and Whittaker made him pay. A head kick wobbled Jacare, and Whittaker followed up with punches and elbows that forced referee Mario Yamasaki to step in on Jacare’s behalf. In the aftermath, Whittaker called for a fight with Michael Bisping, who he was scheduled to fight last year before injury nixed the fight.
See how Twitter reacted to these pivotal fights below:
Perhaps the most impressive thing about Rose Namajunas is that she doesn’t seem to have reached her full potential as a mixed martial artist.
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