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Joanna Jedrzejczyk is one of the greatest UFC women’s champions in the promotion’s history. She made her octagon debut in 2014 and has since been a mainstay in the division’s top five rankings. In 2015, she defeated Carla Esparza by second-round TKO to become the new women's strawweight champion.
It was a historic reign as she had five successful title defenses before losing it to Rose Namajunas in 2017. In addition, Jedrzejczyk still holds the record for most strawweight wins in the promotion’s history. She hasn’t shied away from a challenge during her career either. This was apparent when she moved up to flyweight for a bout with Valentina Shevchenko for the then vacant flyweight championship.
‘The Boogeywoman' has a fighting style that makes all her fights exciting to watch. She has earned the Fight of the Night bonus three times and Performance of the Night bonus once. This list will look at the top five Joanna Jedrzejczyk fights in the UFC.
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#5. Joanna Jedrzejczyk vs. Carla Esparza – UFC 185
Joanna Jedrzejczyk’s fight with Carla Esparza was a very important moment in her UFC career. After back-to-back decision wins over Juliana Lima and Claudia Gadelha, she earned the title against then-strawweight champion Carla Esparza.
‘Cookie Monster’ was the inaugural strawweight champion after defeating Rose Namajunas in TUF season 20 finale. The season was significant as it introduced the 115 lb division to the promotion and crowned their first strawweight champion.
‘The Boogeywoman' had a takedown defense like no other. The champion was unable to have any success with her takedowns and was forced to trade strikes with a superior striker.
Jedrzejczyk landed multiple combinations with ease to put an end to Esparza’s title reign in the second-round. She stunned ‘Cookie Monster’ with a straight-right hand and followed it up with a flurry of strikes against the fence for the finish.
#4. Joanna Jedrzejczyk vs. Claudia Gadelha 2 – The Ultimate Fighter 23 Finale
During her reign as UFC strawweight champion, Joanna Jedrzejczyk became a lot more popular with the fanbase. As a result, she became a coach on TUF season 23 opposite Claudia Gadelha.
Jedrzejczyk and Gadelha got the opportunity to settle their differences when they fought on TUF 23 finale. It was a rematch of their 2014 encounter, which saw ‘The Boogeywoman’ earn a split-decision win. The rematch lived up to the hype and was a back-and-forth fight similar to their first encounter.
‘Claudinha’ got the better of the champion in the first and second rounds. She dropped her in the first-round and then used her grappling to take her down in the second-round. The momentum completely shifted in the third-round as Jedrzejczyk connected with her front-kicks and combinations, which took a toll on the challenger. She took over the fight from there and was awarded the unanimous decision. Both fighters also earned a Fight of the Night bonus as well.
#3. Joanna Jedrzejczyk vs. Jessica Penne – UFC Fight Night 69
Jedrzejczyk’s first title defense against Jessica Penne was one of her most impressive performances in the UFC. The champion put her world-class striking on full display and bloodied the challenger.
‘The Boogeywoman’ overwhelmed Penne with vicious combinations that included a front-kick to the face and elbows in the clinch. The volume of strikes and the incredible pace that she maintained was a sight to behold. Penne had no answer for the champion and had a difficult time dealing with the pressure.
From that moment, the challenger’s best chance at winning was taking the champion down and submitting her. She was unable to do so and paid the price with every failed takedown attempt. Jedrzejczyk took advantage of Penne against the fence. She landed a stiff jab, a right-cross and a knee strike to earn a TKO win and a Fight of the Night bonus.
#2. Joanna Jedrzejczyk vs. Rose Namajunas 2 - UFC 223
When Joanna Jedrzejczyk’s career is over, there will be no denying that Rose Namajunas was one of her biggest rivals. The two have fought twice in the octagon and both results were significant. Namajunas knocked out Jedrzejczyk in 2017 and at same time ended her reign as strawweight champion. She was a dominant champion, so it was a surprise when she lost in the manner she did.
The rematch was a much closer fight and was a great display of the women’s 155 lb division. It looked like ‘Thug Rose’ was heading towards another TKO win after landing plenty of significant strikes, but ‘The Boogeywoman’ survived. She regrouped and stuck to her kicks which began to take a toll on the champion.
The fight went the distance and the judges scored the bout 49-46 in favor of Namajunas. The unanimous decision win silenced the doubters who may have felt her first win over Jedrzejczyk was a fluke.
#1. Joanna Jedrzejczyk vs. Zhang Weili – UFC 248
Jedrzejczyk’s fight with Zhang Weili was one of the greatest women’s fight in UFC history. It was a back-and-forth fight that saw then-strawweight champion Weili earn a split decision and retain her title.
Both fighters maintained a rapid pace for the full 25-minutes, which made it a very entertaining fight to watch. The volume of their strikes kept fans on the edge of their seats. At times it looked like the end was near as they both had successful exchanges that ended with a significant strike. Jedrzejczyk’s face was unrecognizable after the fight due to the number of significant strikes she absorbed.
The bout could’ve gone either way and it was apparent with how the judges scored each round. It was one of those bouts that took a lot out of both competitors. Jedrzejczyk hasn’t fought since the loss, while Weili lost the title to Namajunas as well as the rematch.
