Christening Rose Namajunas pushes for second late-career title

Rose Namajunas found herself back in the river in Irvine, Kentucky.

That’s where Namajunas was baptized a little over a year ago — part of a rededication that underscored his desire to become a two-division UFC champion at the end of his career.

At that time, the Westminster resident gave up drinking and smoking marijuana and focused on her Christian faith. The result is a two-game winning streak that she looks to extend on Saturday in a main card bout against Erin Blanchfield at UFC Fight Night in Edmonton, Canada. This is the first time in Namajunas’ UFC career that she has had three fights in a calendar year.

“In my young adulthood, I fell away from my faith and at some point I didn’t feel like I needed God,” Namajunas said. “Then I realized that it really was, and I started looking. … And since I brought Him back into my life, it has become everything to me. It guides all my thoughts and actions every day. Whenever I stray from (my faith), I suddenly don’t recognize myself. It is the anchor that pulls me back.

“It’s what I feel called to do, and I’d say it’s the source of all my success right now.”

The 32-year-old Namajunas, a two-time bantamweight champion who moved up to bantamweight in 2023, started at 125 pounds with a loss to Manon Fiorot in September 2023. But Namajunas responded with back-to-back wins, first over Amanda Ribas in May and then Tracy Cortez in the main event at the Ball Arena in July.

Namajunas’ decision to get re-baptized (she also got baptized when she was 9, but says her abusive stepfather did it and it “confused me”) fueled her desire to step into the Octagon for a third time. time in 2024.

“Basically, I just made up my mind that if I can (fight a lot), I’m going to do it,” Namajunas said. “Usually after my last performance (in Denver) when I was younger, I thought about just enjoying the time a little bit. There was no such sense of urgency.

“But now I’m ready to see if I can do all the things I want to do in my career and see what I’m capable of. If I can become a two-division champion, I will do it in the most efficient and enjoyable way possible.”

Namajunas takes 5th place in the lightest division and is a +105 outsider against #3 Blanchfield, who enters Rogers Place after losing to Fioro in March. Before that, Blanchfield won her first six UFC fights.

With a win over Blanchfield, Namajunas will knock the door on a shot at the bantamweight belt currently held by Valentina Shevchenko, who regained the title from Alexa Grasso with a unanimous decision win at UFC 306 in September.

Grasso remains the No. 1 contender and Fiorot is No. 2. Greeley fighter Macy Barber is No. 4, but was recently sidelined with medical issues that forced her to pull out of a scheduled July fight against Namajunas in Denver.

“If I win this fight, (a title shot) will make sense,” Namajunas said. “I think the UFC will probably try to make Manon vs. Shevchenko (for the next title fight) because that makes sense as well. It depends on when that happens and if I get that chance based on my performance and what the UFC has to offer.