The UFC returns to Denver this weekend for a Fight Night card headlined by former champion Rose Namajunas and breakout star Tracy Cortez.
After taking a week off, the UFC is back on our screens this weekend as the promotion touches down in Colorado for the first time since 2018 for a Fight Night event headlined by a flyweight fight that could well deliver the next title challenger at 125lbs.
Rose Namajunas takes on Tracy Cortez in the main event of UFC Denver
Following back-to-back decision losses to Carla Esparza and Manon Fiorot in 2023, ‘Thug’ Rose Namajunas bounced back in a big way earlier this year as she dominated Amanda Ribas en route to a unanimous decision win of her own.
This weekend, the former queen of the strawweight division returns to face star-in-the-making Tracy Cortez, who herself is riding a fabulous 11-fight winning streak, including wins over Jasmine Jasudavicius, Melissa Gatto, and Erin Blanchfield.
On the latest episode of their Pound-4-Pound podcast, Kamaru Usman and Henry Cejudo previewed what should be a fascinating chess match topping the bill in Denver – with the former UFC champions having wildly different predictions for how they think the main event will go down.
Henry Cejudo explains why he’s siding with Tracy Cortez
“This is a great fight; this is a really, really good fight,” teased Kamaru Usman, acknowledging that such a sought-after spot in front of a packed-out arena could be a coming-out party for the already wildly popular Tracy Cortez.
“Her name has been in the UFC for a few years and everyone’s wondering when she’s going to be [at the] forefront… This is the year of new stars, Sean O’Malley, Ilia Topuria, Merab Dvalishvili – this is the year of new stars and I think right now, Tracy Cortez is close to it – this is her opportunity to really put her name out there as the female to look out for.”
Given that he has trained and coached the 11-1 Arizona native for several years, it shouldn’t be a surprise to hear that Henry Cejudo is siding with Cortez to earn an underdog victory in Denver.
“She’s technically sound and there’s one thing that she brings to the table and I’m not too sure Rose can handle it – Do you know what it is? It’s called wresting, in particular, inside trips and takedowns.”
Cejudo admitted that “Rose can disarm you with her lateral movements,” as she tries to set traps on the feet; however, ‘Triple C’ also doubted whether Namajunas’ skillset in 2024 is as polished as fans think.
“She’s crafty and really good on the feet but is she the full package? Yes, she’s become champion, but she’s also shown holes [in her game] and I just believe that Tracy Cortez, with the wrestling, with the proper gameplan, that she’s going to take it.
“And we believe that she’s [Cortez] the next person in line to fight the winner of Alexa Grasso and Valentina Shevchenko,” teased Cejudo, with that title fight expected to happen at UFC 306 at The Sphere in September.
Kamaru Usman argues Rose Namajunas will earn the victory in Denver
Given his own history with Namajunas thanks to her training alongside coach Trevor Wittman, Usman countered Cejudo’s underdog prediction by stating that whilst there have been holes in her game of late, the former champion should still be able to get her hand raised in Denver.
“I’m going to happily disagree with you on that one because ‘Thug’ Rose is probably one of the best female mixed martial artists that I’ve ever seen in the way that she’s able to pick things up, display the technique, the mind, the vision.
“Don’t get me wrong, there’s lapses of judgment in the fights, but Rose is one of the best and I’m in awe sometimes when I watch her do certain things – I’m like ‘Holy c***, I wish I could do that’.”
‘The Nigerian Nightmare’ acknowledged that whilst Namajunas has slipped out of the title picture in recent months, she still has the experience and skillset to finish anyone in the division.
“It is what it is, she had some of those losses for world titles – [but] she stopped Joanna when Joanna was virtually unbeatable at the time; Weili Zhang was virtually unbeatable, and Rose when out there and stopped her.
“Of course, you have lapses in the fight like the Carla Esparza fight, but Rose has got back on the horse, she’s been able to go out there and put on some great performances.
“At the end of the day, I see what you’re saying because you train with Tracy, but I just think Rose is a tall order for anybody, any female in the division to step into [the octagon against].”
At the time of writing, Rose Namajunas is the ‘moderate favorite’ to win on Saturday night – you can catch the action live from the Bell Arena in Denver, Colorado on July 13.