The 5 best Strawweight title fights in UFC history

#3 Joanna Jedrzejczyk vs. Karolina Kowalkiewicz – UFC 205

Karolina Kowalkiewicz hurt Joanna Jedrzejczyk in their fight, but couldn't finish her off

UFC 205 was one of the promotion’s biggest ever cards – their first in the state of New York – and with three title fights on the card including a champion vs. champion match in the form of Eddie Alvarez vs. Conor McGregor, the Strawweight title fight between champion Joanna Jedrzejczyk and challenger Karolina Kowalkiewicz was flying under the radar, despite being the first time two Polish fighters had battled over a UFC title.

Early on, it looked like business as usual for Jedrzejczyk, who was making her 4th title defense. Kowalkiewicz seemed determined to stand and strike with the dangerous kickboxer, and while it was clear that she wasn’t being outclassed as previous victims like Carla Esparza and Jessica Penne had been, she wasn’t exactly having too much success either. By the end of the third round, Jedrzejczyk had built a clear lead and it seemed like the fight was in the bag.

The 4th round changed everything, though. Kowalkiewicz evidently figured she had nothing to lose and came out swinging for the fences – and to everyone’s shock, she landed a huge right hand that sent Jedrzejczyk crashing down to the canvas. Somehow though, the champion managed to pull herself up and fired back, and suddenly the fans in Madison Square Garden were treated to an absolute firefight.

In the end, Jedrzejczyk managed to do enough to take the fight over again, and was able to clearly outpoint Kowalkiewicz by taking the final round. She retained her title with a unanimous decision, but the truth was that it was Kowalkiewicz who had captured everyone’s imagination by dropping the seemingly unstoppable champ in the 4th round – and it was that knockdown that turned the fight from a standard title defense into an instant classic.