After months of forced silence with regards to her upcoming title fight at the TUF 20 Finale, Rose Namajunas is relieved to be able to openly discuss her recent string of achievements.
If you ask Rose about her main event slot fighting for the inaugural UFC strawweight title, she would tell you that she envisioned this all along.
“If you rewind back to the first episode, I had mentioned what I thought about the rankings – I was ranked No. 7 – but I knew in my heart and soul that I was No. 1,” Namajunas told MMAFighting.com’s Ariel Helwani. “It was just a matter of proving it to other people. I know what I am capable of; it was just a matter of showing everyone else.”
Namajunas finished all three of her fights on the reality show, including a submission win over Randa Markos in the semi-final stage on last Wednesday’s show. She believes her aggression and unrelenting will to finish fights makes her the star of the show.
“A finish is way better than a decision but sometimes a three-round war can be very exciting. (Esparza’s) fight with Jessica Penne was a little more action packed; it had a little more striking but it pales in comparison to my fights – the aggression that I bring or the intensity that I have.”
Having, for the most part, enjoyed her time on the show, Namajunas is now focused on making women’s MMA history on Friday night.
“Yes, I’ve been dreaming about that for pretty much a year now. Ever since I lost to Tecia (Torres) I had to set some goals and really have a sense of direction in my career.”
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