Is ‘Thug’ Rose the 2ND Greatest Women’s Fighter Ever?

The two-time and reigning champion has dominated the toughest weight class in women’s combat for years. Yes, she has suffered setbacks in her UFC career against notable opponents like Jessica Andrade, Karolina Kowalkiewicz and, of course, Carla Esparza, but like a true champion, she comes back better with each setback.

The UFC’s First Avenger

While avenging losses to Andrade, Torres and potentially Esparza when they meet at UFC 274, ‘Thug’ Rose has a gang of solid to great names on her hit list. Finishing the previous strawweight goat Joanna Jedrzejczyk and then beating her in a five round war while doing the same Zhang Weili is an impressive accomplishment to put on one’s resume.

With two wins over Zhang, two victories over Jedrzejczyk and W’s against Jessica Andrade, Tecia Torres and Michelle Waterson, ‘Thug’ Rose arguably has the best resume of any fighter not named Cyborg. Adding Carla Esparza to the list would further cement Namajunas’ legacy as one of the greatest female fighters in the history of the sport.

Watching Namajunas fight, there are very few holes in her game. When Rose is mentally in the clear, there is not a single 115-pound woman that can hang with her. Cris Cyborg would be the consensus number two, which is understandable. She is a pioneer and continues to rack up wins in this new era. The main issue is that Rose is not only a more well-rounded fighter, but also has a better strength of schedule.

Of course, this is not Cyborg’s fault, but her losing to the smaller Amanada Nunes could arguably drop her into the three or four spot on the list of greatest female fighters. We of course cannot forget Valentina Shevchenko who has a great argument for the number two spot on the all time list.

However, despite Shevchenko’s impressive title run, it is in what many consider to be the weakest division in the UFC, though her wins at 135 are very hard to argue against. Finishing the current bantamweight champion Julianna Pena, along with a unanimous decision over Holly Holm is impressive, but Namajunas’ resume is truly something to behold.

Who is on your list of the greatest female fighters of all time?

Featured image credit to Embed from Getty Images