Joanna Jedrzejczyk: I’m On Another Level Now
Joanna Jedrzejczyk is the most dominant female champion in mixed martial arts (MMA) today, and at the rate she’s progressing, she’s on track to possibly becoming the best of all time.
In the co-main event of last night’s (Sat. May 13, 2017) UFC 211 pay-per-view (PPV) from Dallas, Jedrzejczyk took home a lopsided unanimous decision win over No. 3-ranked Jessica Andrade for her fifth consecutive 115-pound title defense. “”Joanna Champion” put on one of the best performances of her career, as it marked her second fight training under newly-joined coaches at American Top Team.
During the post-fight press conference, Jedrzejczy stated that she believes her performance against her Brazilian counterpart was the best of her career, and the work she has been putting in over at American Top Team is a large part of it (quotes via MMA Fighting):
“Yes, I think so, even if I’m getting older,” Jedrzejczyk said at the UFC 211 post-fight conference. “I feel this fire, and I want to learn. Since I moved to American Top Team, I feel like I’m the bird that got to escape from its cage, if you know that meaning. I’m very hard on myself everyday, you can ask my coaches, and after a good training session, I’m not happy because I know I can do better or change something to do better, you know? That’s why I keep on defending this belt.”
Jedrzejczy is still undefeated in her MMA career with 14 straight wins. She defeated inaugural strawweight champion Carla Esparza via second round TKO to win the title before taking out the likes of Jessica Penne, Valerie Letourneau, Claudia Gadelha, Karolina Kowalkiewicz, and now Andrade to defend her title.
It’s expected that Jedrzejczy’s next challenger will be No. 4-ranked Rose Namajunas, but regardless if that’s the case or now, the Polish knockout artist remains prepared to take on any and all challengers who threaten her reign as queen at 115 pounds:
“Before my last fight at Madison Square Garden, I only had six, seven weeks to work with my new coaches and team,” Jedrzejczyk said. “It wasn’t enough, but I think we still put on great work. This time we definitely had more time, and I’m very happy. I feel like I stepped on a different level and I’m looking forward to it. I (will) go on vacations for a few days to fly back to Poland to spend some time with my family, but I can’t wait to get back to ATT and put in work again with my team.
“I don’t know who’s going to be my next opponent right now,” Jedrzejczyk added. “I’m happy about this fight and I’m looking forward to spend some time with my fiancé and my family. I will have some vacations, and after that, I will think about my next fight. I don’t care who’s my next opponent, I will put on great work and defend this title for a sixth time.”
