Weili Zhang brought a new level, winning against her filled me with adrenaline for months, admitted Rose Namajunas

Monster Energy is coming out with a three-part series, All On The Line, featuring interesting stories of UFC stars. One of them is Rose Namajunas, currently the strawweight champion, who is facing her second defense in May.

Rose Namajunas became champion for the first time in 2017 when she defeated the previously undefeated Joanna Jedrzejczyk at the age of 25. She was also successful in her rematch with her five months later.

However, she subsequently lost to Jessica Andrade. “It was my weakest performance. I didn’t know what to do. I came to the realization that MMA is not a sport to be half-hearted about. You have to give it your all,” Namajunas let her voice be heard on the All On The Line series.

The loss affected Rose a lot. As she admitted herself, she cried a lot, lost her confidence. But little by little, she began to regain it. She knew she wasn’t going to get anything for free.

Andrade lost her title in her match with Weili Zhang. So the UFC boss came up with a brilliant plan. He wanted Namajunas to face a fresh champion. But the American fighter with Lithuanian roots refused.

“I wasn’t ready for that. I got to the point where I needed to fight Andrade. I couldn’t accept a title fight without correcting my mistake first,” the now 29-year-old UFC star revealed.

Namajunas handled the rematch successfully, defeating her opponent on points. After that, the plan and goal was clear – to get back to the title. However, it wasn’t easy. The Chinese fighter destroyed the legendary Joanna Jedrzejczyk in her defense and showed tremendous qualities

Even Rose herself acknowledged Zhang’s great contribution: “She brought a lot of toughness, speed and accuracy. She brought a whole new level to our division that most fighters are not up to. It was like climbing a mountain. You could be as prepared as you wanted, but you knew it was going to be tough. I had to be prepared to suffer through something.”

When the fight came, Rose was on a roll. One minute she felt good, the next she felt the other way around. One minute she was confident, the next minute she wasn’t. She tried to talk herself out of seeing it that way. She convinced herself that she was the best.

She was aware that Zhang was capable of not only knocking her opponents out, but also tightening her up for a submission. That was why she tried not to push or rush into anything. However, after just one minute and 18 seconds, it was over. She sent the Chinese down with a great headkick.

“Her body fell to the ground like a tree. It was like part of God’s plan. It was obvious that something special had happened. The whole world was on fire, Lil Wayne even said he was going to make a song about me. I was very high. I didn’t sleep for about two days after I got home, it was an adrenaline rush for months,” Namajunas admitted her feelings.

She confirmed that her win over Weili was no fluke six months later when she beat the Chinese on points. Her next defense awaits her on May 7 at UFC 274. Her opponent will be Carla Esparza.

Source: Monster Energy