Athletes
UFC Strawweight Title Lineage
Go Through All Of The Strawweight Title Winners In UFC History
In 2014, the world was introduced to the first group of women that would be competing in the UFC’s strawweight division, with the 20th season of The Ultimate Fighter set to crown its first champion. Let's go through the belt holders thus far.
Carla Esparza (2014) Defeats Rose Namajunas in The Ultimate Fighter Season 20 Finale (12/12/2014) to see who would be crowned the first UFC women’s strawweight champion. Esparza submitted Namajunas in the third round and would forever etch her name in the history books. Esparza’s reign would last for 92 days. (Watch On UFC Fight Pass)
Warrior Code: Joanna Jedrzejczyk
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Warrior Code: Joanna Jedrzejczyk
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Joanna Jędrzejczyk (2015-2017) Defeats Esparza’s at At UFC 185 (3/14/2015), in the second round via TKO to become the new champion. With her win over Esparza, Jędrzejczyk would not only become the first Polish UFC champion, but she would also make history by becoming the first female European UFC champion. The Polish champion would sit on top of the division from 2015-2017, successfully defending her title five times. Two years removed from being champion, Joanna Jędrzejczyk remains the longest reigning champion in UFC women’s strawweight history, with 966 days as champion. (Watch On UFC Fight Pass)
Top Finishes: Rose Namajunas
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Top Finishes: Rose Namajunas
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Rose Namajunas (2017-2019) Defeats Jędrzejczyk at UFC 217 (11/4/2017) by TKO in the first round. For her first title defense, Namajunas would face Jędrzejczyk in a rematch for the strawweight title. After battling for all five rounds, “Thug Rose” would win her rematch against the Polish striker to retain her championship. Namajunas’s first title reign would last for 554 days. (Watch On UFC Fight Pass)
Jessica Andrade (2019) Defeats Rose Namajunas at UFC 237 (5/11/2019) in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Andrade knocked out Namajunas with a vicious slam to become the new champion. The Portuguese fighter would wear the crown for 112 days. (Watch On UFC Fight Pass)
Zhang Weili (2019-2020) Defeats Jessica Andrade at UFC Fight Night: Andrade vs Zhang (8/31/2019) via TKO. (Watch On UFC Fight Pass) Defended title against Joanna Jędrzejczyk.
Rose Namajunas (2021-2022) Defeats Jéssica Andrade via split decision win at UFC 251 (7/12/2020). (Watch On UFC Fight Pass) Namajunas defended her title against Weili at UFC 261 (4/24/2021) in Jacksonville, Florida. With the first-round knockout of Weili, Rose Namajunas became the first woman in UFC history to regain a championship. (Watch On UFC Fight Pass)
Carla Esparza | Career Retrospective
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Carla Esparza | Career Retrospective
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Carla Esparza (2022) Defeats Rose Namajunas at UFC 274 (5/7/2022). While the fight wasn't particularly exciting, overcoming all the set backs and the adversity showed the true champion heart of Esparza. (Watch On UFC Fight Pass)
Zhang Weili (2022-Present) Defeats Carla Esparza at UFC 281 (11/12/2022) rear-naked choke. (Watch On UFC Fight Pass) Defeats Amanda Lemos at UFC 292 (08/19/23)
