UFC women’s strawweight champion Rose Namajunas is set for a return to the Octagon in May at UFC 237 in Brazil following a year on the sidelines.
Her opponent? The ever-impressive Brazilian Jessica Andrade as confirmed by MMAJunkie and originally reported by ESPN.
Namajunas is scheduled to make her second title defence in hostile territory, facing Andrade in her hoe country. Though, the event’s host city and venue is yet to be announced.
“Thug” Rose won UFC gold after shocking the world by knocking out the then-seemingly unbeatable Joanna Jedrzejczyk at UFC 217. Namajunas went on to beat Jedrzejczyk once again, successfully defending her belt in April 2018 at UFC 223.
Namajunas is currently riding a three-fight winning streak, as is upcoming opponent Andrade.
Since losing her title fight to Jedrzejczyk, Andrade has looked a force to be reckoned with at 115 pounds.
Andrade convincingly won decisions against perennial contender Claudia Gadelha and Tecia Torres before knocking out Karolina Kowalkiewicz in the first round in devastating fashion at UFC 228 in September.
The Brazilian was once a revered bantamweight, before dropping down two weight classes. As a strawweight, Andrade is 6-1 in the UFC.
