The next UFC women’s strawweight title challenger could be decided Saturday.
Former champion Joanna Jedrzejczyk meets fellow top contender Michelle Waterson in the main event of UFC Tampa. Jedrzejczyk has said that she has been promised a title shot against new champion Zhang Weili with a victory. Meanwhile, Waterson has long expressed her goal to become the first UFC champion who is also a mother.
Jedrzejczyk comes in ranked as the No. 4 strawweight in the world by ESPN, while Waterson is No. 6.
Jedrzejczyk (15-3) was the most successful champion in the 115-pound division’s history. The Poland native had five title defenses between 2015 and 2017, the second-best total ever among women in the UFC behind Ronda Rousey. Jedrzejczyk, 32, dropped her last fight to Valentina Shevchenko in a bout for the flyweight title, but she’s only lost to one person at strawweight in the UFC, twice to Rose Namajunas.
Waterson (17-6) is on a three-fight winning streak and has won five of her last seven. The Albuquerque, New Mexico, resident beat former title challenger Karolina Kowalkiewicz at UFC Philadelphia in March to set up this matchup. Waterson, 33, is the former Invicta FC atomweight champion and at 5-foot-3 will be the smaller fighter against the 5-6 Jedrzejczyk.
In the co-main event, perennial featherweight contender Cub Swanson takes on Kron Gracie, son of the legendary Brazilian jiu-jitsu and vale tudo fighter Rickson Gracie. Swanson (25-11) is looking to snap a four-fight losing streak. Gracie (5-0) won his UFC debut over Alex Caceres in February and is a promising up-and-coming MMA fighter, but will be giving up a lot in the way of experience to Swanson, who is 10-7 in the UFC.
Also at UFC Tampa, Niko Price and James Vick face off at welterweight in a battle of action fighters, top prospect Mackenzie Dern returns against fellow blue-chipper Amanda Ribas, and Deiveson Figueiredo meets Tim Elliott in a key flyweight matchup.
Fight in progress
Women’s flyweight: JJ Aldrich (7-3, -170) vs. Lauren Mueller (5-2, +140)
Still to come
Strawweight main event: Joanna Jedrzejczyk (15-3, -350) vs. Michelle Waterson (17-6, +280)
Featherweight: Cub Swanson (25-11, +150) vs. Kron Gracie (5-0, -180)
Welterweight: Niko Price (13-3, -150) vs. James Vick (13-4, +120)
Strawweight: Mackenzie Dern (7-0, -140) vs. Amanda Ribas (7-1, +110)
Lightweight: Matt Frevola (7-1-1, +140) vs. Luis Pena (7-1, -170)
Middleweight: Eryk Anders (12-4, -170) vs. Gerald Meerschaert (29-11, +140)
Light heavyweight: Ryan Spann (16-5-150) vs. Devin Clark (10-3, +120)
Lightweight: Thomas Gifford (17-8) vs. Mike Davis (7-2)
Welterweight: Max Griffin (15-6, -150) vs. Alex Morono (16-5, +120)
Flyweight: Deiveson Figueiredo (16-1, -190) vs. Tim Elliot (15-8-1, +160)
Bantamweight: Marlon Vera (14-5-1, -170) vs. Andre Ewell (15-5, +140)
Welterweight: Miguel Baeza (7-0, -200) vs. Hector Aldana (4-3, +170)
Middleweight: Marvin Vettori (13-4-1, -360) vs. Andrew Sanchez (12-4, +280)