Still recovering from a neck injury, Rose Namajunas has a timetable and opponent in mind for her return, she told reporters at UFC Denver over the weekend.
Denver, CO — Rose Namajunas was in Denver over the weekend to support Ashley Yoder, an adopted member of her team who joined the gym short notice ahead of her fight against Amanda Cooper at UFC Denver. Stopping by backstage to speak with reporters, she also gave an update on her own plans to return to the octagon, and it sounds like Spring is the target for the UFC women’s strawweight champion.
On Yoder, Namajunas said that “we had a short time to really get to know her. She was JJ [Aldrich]’s friend off of the show [TUF 23], and a friend of JJ is a friend of mine. JJ’s obviously really close to me, and we train together a lot.”
Getting to know Yoder over the course of just three weeks, Namajunas added “she’s just really bubbly, really sweet, not what you would think of your stereotypical fighter. She almost seems like a person you would know from a past life or something.” The good news is, Yoder won her fight in Denver over the weekend, so the move worked out.
As for her own career, Namajunas (8-3) has been getting back into strength and conditioning, though not taking any impact to the head. A neck injury has kept her out of action since the Summer. “After the holidays, I think we could start talking about a fight,” she suggested. In the meantime, “I’m doing a lot of film study and lots of mental work right now.”
As for a timetable, “I like fighting in Spring and Fall, I think that’s a good time for me,” Namajunas said. “So that’s kind of what I’ve expressed already. So we’ll see what happens.”
Her next opponent is more clear, as ‘Thug Rose’ explained that “I don’t see how anybody else other than [Jessica] Andrade would make sense. I know she wants to stay active, so if she wants to have another fight until I’m ready, than that’s cool, but if not, I’d love to have the chance at her.”
March or April is possible, Namajunas finished.
