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Rose Namajunas vs Carla Esparza Preview & Picks – Namajunas To Stay Champ At UFC 274
- Rose Namajunas vs Carla Esparza picks for Saturday, May 7
- UFC 274 is taking place at Footprint Center in Phoenix, Arizona
- Preview, predictions and head to head stats
- Rose Namajunas vs Carla Esparza Preview & Picks
- Head To Head
- Rose Namajunas Form
- Carla Esparza Form
- Verdict
- Rose Namajunas vs Carla Esparza FAQs
UFC 274 Preview & Picks
Rose Namajunas vs Carla Esparza Preview & Picks
Rose Namajunas is backed to retain her strawweight title by knockout.
Namajunas lost the first meeting between the pair in 2014, but has improved massively since then.
She is an elite striker with some big KOs on her record, and we are likely to see another one here.
- 7 of Rose Namajunas’ 11 wins have come via stoppage
- Rose Namajunas has KO’d Joanna Jedrzejczyk & Zhang Weili
- Carla Esparza has been stopped 3 times in her career
- Carla Esparza has been knocked out twice
- Carla Esparza’s 3 stoppage losses came inside 4.5 rounds
Head To Head
- Carla Esparza submitted Rose Namajunas in 1:26 of Round 3 in December 2014
Rose Namajunas Form
Rose Namajunas has won six of their last seven fights to sit atop the UFC strawweight division.
Namajunas started this good run of form when she submitted Michelle Waterson in the second round in April 2017.
In her next outing she shocked the world by knocking out renowned striker Joanna Jedrzejczyk in just 183 seconds to become champion.
She then successfully defended the belt with a decision win over Jedrzejczyk in an immediate rematch.
Namajunas lost the title in her next outing though, suffering a KO defeat after being slammed by Jessica Andrade.
‘Thug Rose’ took the rematch by split decision and then regained the title in April of last year with a sensational 78-second knockout of Zhang Weili.
Namajunas ended the year with a split decision win over Zhang in the rematch, leaving here with an 11-4 record.
Carla Esparza Form
Carla Esparza is enjoying her best run of form since signing with the UFC back in 2014.
Esparza tapped out Namajunas in her debut and earned an immediate shot at the strawweight title.
She was knocked out in the second round by Joanna Jedrzejczyk and went on to lose three of her next six fights.
Esparza has battled her way back into relevancy since 2019 though, reeling off five consecutive wins.
The run started with a unanimous decision win over Vima Jandiroba and a majorty decision win against Alexa Grasso in 2019.
She continued her good form with a couple more wins in 2020, but neither were convincing.
Esparza claimed split decision wins over Michelle Waterson and Marina Rodriguez to extend her win streak to four fights.
She then made it five-in-a-row in her sole fight of 2021, knocking out Yan Xiaonan in the second round.
Esparza’s record now stands at 18-6, with four wins coming by knockout and four via submission.
Verdict
Rose Namajunas has a reach advantage and lands more significant strikes per minute.
She has also shown stopping power in big fights, so ‘Thug Rose’s is tipped to finish this defence.
Method Of Victory – Namajunas by stoppage @ +200
Exact Method Of Victory – Namajunas by KO/TKO @ +400
Total Rounds – Under 4.5 @ +125
Rose Namajunas vs Carla Esparza FAQs
Where can I watch the Rose Namajunas vs Carla Esparza live stream?
You can watch the Rose Namajunas vs Carla Esparza stream by using ExpressVPN.
Where is Rose Namajunas vs Carla Esparza taking place?
Rose Namajunas vs Carla Esparza is taking place at UFC 274 on Saturday, May 7 at the Footprint Center in Phoenix, Arizona.
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