White: Esparza Next For Namajunas

Just last month, Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) president Dana White wasn’t sold on the idea of giving Carla Esparza the next title fight against current women’s strawweight champion Rose Namajunas. But once again it seems the brash head honcho has had a change of heart.

During a recent interview with ESPN, White confirmed that Esparza would “100-percent” be next for the reigning 115-pound champion.

Esparza and Namajunas have fought each other once before with “Cookie Monster” defeating “Thug Rose” back in 2014 to win the inaugural division strap. Esparza — the No. 2 ranked fighter in the division — has won five straight with her last loss coming against Tatiana Suarez three years ago.

Meanwhile, Namajunas successfully defended her title against Zhang Weili at UFC 268 via split decision, just seven months removed from the night she knocked out “Magnum” to win back the title she lost to Jessica Andrade, improving her win streak to three.

White didn’t divulge any details regarding when and where the fight would take place, but it’s a safe bet that the rematch will go down in the first quarter of 2022.

Until then, care to offer up a prediction of three?