UFC Fight Night Rose Namajunas powers past Tracy Cortez in ...

14 Jul 2024

Eurosport.com AU

Published 14/07/2024 at 09:07 GMT

Rose Namajunas overcame Tracy Cortez with a dominant win at the Ball Arena in Denver. The 32-year-old produced a commanding performance in front of her hometown crowd, utilising her excellent grappling skills to overpower Cortez. A stacked main card also saw wins for Muslim Salikhov - fighting in the co-main event against Santiago Ponzinibbio, while Jean Silva beat Drew Dober.

Rose Namajunas beat Tracy Cortez at UFC Fight Night.

Photo Eurosport.com AU

Image credit: Getty Images

Rose Namajunas claimed a superb unanimous decision victory over Tracy Cortez in the main event flyweight contest at UFC Fight Night in Denver.

The fight was scored 49-46, 49-46, 48-47 in favour of the 32-year-old, topping a stacked main card at the Ball Arena.

The two-time strawweight champion delighted her hometown crowd with a dominant performance, setting her stall out early with a perfectly timed left hook in the first round.

Namajunas showcased her impressive repertoire of groundwork in the third, grappling brilliantly on the canvas, and continued her dominance in the fourth.

Cortez rallied well in the fifth to end the fight strongly, but it was nowhere near enough to deny Namajunas from claiming a well-deserved victory.

Reflecting on the fight, she toId ufc.com: “I feel really good; I put her down early and over time she gained a little more confidence, being able to pressure me, so I had to work in a little more wrestling.

“I thought it was a really well-rounded performance; I felt like I showed a lot of skills, and she showed a lot of heart - it was a good show.

“She would good bursts of energy and think: 'here's my chance', or get some guts to go for it. I was impressed with that, but then when I got strong with her, she would get tired.

“The wresting came in handy for sure.”

This win for Namajunas means 32-year-old has now claimed consecutive wins over ranked opponents after most recently overcoming Amanda Ribas in March.

Meanwhile, Cortez was halted in her tracks after winning each of her previous 11 fights.

Elsewhere on the night, Muslim Salikhov overcame Santiago Ponzinibbio in the co-main event with a victory by split decision in their welterweight clash.

Meanwhile, Jean Silva won courtesy of a doctor's third-round stoppage in a pulsating lightweight bout against Drew Dober.

UFC Fight Night: Namajunas v Cortez results

Rose Namajunas defeats Tracy Cortez by unanimous decision (49-46, 49-46, 48-47)Muslim Salikhov defeats Santiago Ponzinibbio by split decision (28-29, 29-28, 29-28)Jean Silva defeats Drew Dober by TKO (doctor’s stoppage) at 1:28 of round threeGabriel Bonfim defeats Ange Loosa by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)Julian Erosa defeats Christian Rodriguez by submission (guillotine choke) at 4:49 of round oneAbdul Razak Alhassan and Cody Brundage ruled a No Contest (accidental blows) at 0:37 of round oneCharles Johnson defeats Joshua Van by knockout (right uppercut) at 0:20 of round threeJasmine Jasudavicus defeats Fatima Kline by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)Montel Jackson defeats Da’Mon Blackshear by knockout (left hand) at 0:18 of round oneLuana Santos defeats Mariya Agapova by submission (rear-naked choke) at 3:27 of round oneAndre Petroski defeats Josh Fremd by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)Evan Elder defeats Darrius Flowers by submission (arm-triangle choke) at 1:46 of round two

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