Erin Blanchfield is back in the women’s flyweight title race. “Cold Blooded” overcame a cold start to her fight against Rose Namajunas at UFC Fight Night, pouring on the pressure just in time to win a unanimous decision.
Blanchfield and Namajuans met for a five-round fight in Edmonton on Saturday. At stake was a chance to stay in sight of the UFC women’s flyweight championship.
Blanchfield opted to stand up with Namajunas in Round 1. The strategy did not pay off immediately but served her well later in the fight. Namajunas’ slick striking and takedown defense earned her the first two rounds on all the judges’ scorecards but she couldn’t fend off Blanchfield forever.
Blanchfield reversed a regrettable takedown attempt by Namajunas in Round 3 before weaponizing her pace in the final two rounds. Blanchfield shot out of a cannon in rounds four and five. Blanchfield outstruck her opponent by a noticeable margin in the last three rounds.
Blanchfield improved to 13-2 in professional mixed martial arts, bouncing back from a loss to Manon Fiorot. Blanchfield defended her No. 3 spot in the UFC’s official women’s flyweight rankings and will likely stay put. Since moving up from strawweight, Namajunas (13-7) is just 2-2.
