Rose Namajunas appears on Episode 110 of The FightBox Podcast.

“Thug” Rose Namajunas (5-3) is one of the most recognizable female fighters in the UFC today. Her accomplished grappling technique, fearsome striking and trademark short hair have made her a star in the women’s strawweight division. However, for the past six months she has been conspicuously absent from the octagon. In this episode of The FightBox Podcast she explains her lengthy absence from competition, what potential opponents she has in mind and what she was doing in Indonesia.

If fact, while one can assume that a taekwondo and karate black belt, and jiu-jitsu brown belt would not be spending her off-time in front of the TV with a bag of potato chips, you might wonder what she could be doing in south-east Asia. A lot of it is documented on her new Youtube series “Thug Diaries”.

In this episode Namajunas goes into detail about how the series came about and why she was in Indonesia

“I can promote my brand as an individual, rather than just a fighter of the UFC,”she says. Rose also discusses her professional debut in Invicta FC at a young age and how that led to her being signed by the UFC. She also talks about her participation in The Ultimate Fighter 20. She shares the incredible story of her most famous and bloody battle with Paige VanZant from December 2015. MMA fans are still raving about to this day. At one point Rose even reveals what was most satisfying for her during the fight: “Getting a rear naked choke on somebody, I think, is my favorite submission. It’s the ultimate, you know, dominating of somebody,” she remarks.

Namajunas goes on to give her thoughts about the 115 pound division, stating her opinions on the top fighters. This includes the reigning undefeated strawweight champion, Joanna Jedrzejczyk. “I’d beat her in every aspect of the MMA game,” says “Thug”. She also names other opponents who she thinks she may end up fighting in the near future.

In addition, the episode includes a break down of the current state of the UFC women’s strawweight division. It also presents a “weigh-in” on who might be next in line for a title fight. The full show is available to download at FightBox HD.

For fans looking for more interviews with top UFC women’s fighters, be sure to check out episodes 10 and 20 with Joanna Jedrzejczyk, as well as episode 101 with Valentina Shevchenko, the current number one contender for the women’s bantamweight title, who should be facing champion Amanda Nunes later this year. Next week’s podcast features an exclusive interview with world-renown Muay Thai fighter and kickboxer Nathan “Carnage” Corbett.