Rose Namajunas Looking To Create Another Highlight Against Michelle Waterson
No. 4-ranked women’s strawweight contender “Thug” Rose Namajunas is set to take on No. 6-ranked Michelle Waterson in the co-main event of this weekend’s (April 15, 2017) UFC on FOX 24 from Kansas City in what could potentially be deemed a title eliminator bout.
Namajunas is coming off of a loss to former title challenger Karolina Kowalkiewicz last July at UFC 201, while Waterson is coming off of an impressive first round submission victory over Paige VanZant this past December. However, Namajunas doesn’t feel as if “The Karate Hottie” has fought a fighter of her ‘caliber’:
“I can’t really think of anybody that she’s fought that is of my caliber,” Namajunas told the Fight Society podcast (Via FOX Sports) this week. “At the same time, it’s hard for me to really put myself in the same category as anybody else. I’m just different, I’m very unique, very hard to know what I’m going to do.
“She shows that she belongs in the UFC. Obviously, I already knew that she was that caliber of fighter before getting into the UFC when she was in Invicta. It just so happened she had the belt at the time or she was just fighting at atomweight. I’m happy she’s in the UFC. Her fights are pretty exciting. I guess she hasn’t really fought anybody like me yet so that’s definitely going to be a different story. All her other fights in the UFC she’s been pretty dominant and have been pretty exciting.”
As a former Invicta champion, Waterson certainly represents a legitimate challenge, but “Thug” Rose claims that she will be comfortable no matter where the fight ends up:
“I think she’s going to try and strike with me at first but it’s going to turn into a desperate attempt to get it to the ground,” Namajunas said. “I think so [that’s where everything backfires].
“I think Michelle is dangerous in spots. She’s very savvy and sets up little traps and things like that but I’ve really been tightening up my game. I was already really well rounded but I’m really tightening up the loose ends. There’s no part in this fight where I feel uncomfortable at all.”
With that being said, Namajunas is looking to create a ‘highlight’ against Waterson on her way to a title shot:
“This is a perfect opportunity to get a highlight,” Namajunas said about her fight with Waterson. “That’s the plan.”
“The vision that I have is to get a title shot this year,” Namajunas said. “Whether that be one fight in between or that be straight into a title shot, it doesn’t matter.”
Who do you expect to come out on top when these two 115-pound contenders meet this weekend?
