Morning Report: Rose Namajunas sets terms for potential Joanna Jedrzejczyk trilogy fight

For the better part of three years, Joanna Jedrzejczyk was the undefeated champion of the UFC strawweight division, defeating all comers and dominating the top fighters in the division. Then, Rose Namajunas put a stop to that with a first-round knockout at UFC 217. Given Jedrzejczyk’s run of dominance through the division, the two were set for an immediate rematch, and though the fight was much closer this time, Namajunas once again took home the belt, edging out a narrow five-round decision. Now, well set back from the title she once had a stranglehold on, Jedrzejczyk says she intends to work her way back to the belt, but “Thug Rose” has other ideas.

Speaking with TMZ Sports recently, Namajunas said she isn’t interested in a third bout with Jedrzejczyk at the moment until after Jedrzejczyk gets a few more wins under her belt.

“Right now, that fight doesn’t really interest me at the moment,” said Namajunas. “I think I’d be interested to see how she does with somebody else before even entertaining that possibility. At the moment, there’s not much to gain from running that back again.”

Namajunas now has two wins over her so Jedrzejczyk has to climb the mountain all over again to get a third fight. That journey will start with Tecia Torres at UFC Calgary on July 28. Earlier this week, Torres suggested that Jedrzejczyk’s, who has had trouble admitting defeat to Namajunas in the aftermath of their rematch at UFC 223, would be best served by swallowing her pride and showing more humility. It would appear Namajunas agrees as she did lay out one condition under which she would be happy to accept a trilogy bout with Jedrzejczyk: if “Joanna Champion” admitted who the real champion was.

“Unless she’s says I’m the best - publicly!” said Namajunas. “Publicly because I already know she knows. You gotta say it to everybody! [Laughs] She knows I’m the best but she won’t admit it to everybody.”

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