UFC 268: Rose Namajunas edges Zhang Weili in five-round thriller as Chinese challenger pushes champ all the way
- ‘Thug Rose’ retains strawweight title by split decision in Madison Square Garden co-main event
- ‘I had a feeling it was going to be a way tougher fight, and she improved a lot, so got to give her some props,’ Namajunas says
After getting caught with a head kick in April, Zhang Weili wanted to know if Rose Namjunas really was the better fighter over the full 25 minutes.
The margins were fine, but the American edged a five-round war at the famed Madison Square Garden in New York on Saturday night to retain her strawweight title with a split decision in the UFC 268 co-main event.
That’s not to say these two will not meet again down the line, and Zhang (21-3) will not get another chance to stake her claim. But China’s first UFC champion came up short – just – with “Thug Rose”) 11-4) seemingly sealing it with a dominant fifth round on the ground.
“Oh yeah, it was different,” 29-year-old Namajunas told UFC commentator Joe Rogan in the Octagon. “I had a feeling it was going to be a way tougher fight, and she improved a lot, so got to give her some props.
“I was pretty confident in the end that I won it. The first couple of rounds were a little close and I wasn’t sure what was going on but I was just present in the moment so I wasn’t even too worried about the result.”