Carla Esparza News
UFC 281 Results: Weili Zhang stops Carla Esparza in Round 2 (Video)
Chris Taylor - November 12, 2022
UFC 281: 'Adesanya vs. Pereira' Live Results and Highlights
Chris Taylor - November 12, 2022
The Octagon returns to New York for tonight’s UFC 281 event, a fourteen-bout fight card headlined by Israel Adesanya vs. Alex Pereira. Adesanya (23-1 MMA) and Pereira (6-1 MMA) of course have a history, with ‘Poatan’ having defeated ‘Stylebender’ on two occasions in the Glory kickboxing ring.
Joanna Jedrzejczyk comes to Carla Esparza's defense after fans booed her at UFC 281 presser: "She deserves respect"
Josh Evanoff - November 11, 2022
Joanna Jedrzejczyk has come to the defense of UFC women’s strawweight champion Carla Esparza. ‘Cookie Monster’ is set to return to action this Saturday at UFC 281 against Weili Zhang. ‘Magnum’ is fresh off her knockout win over the former Polish champion in June. Heading into the title fight this Saturday, Zhang is a massive betting favorite.
UFC 281 | Pro fighters make their picks for Carla Esparza vs. Zhang Weili title fight
Cole Shelton - November 10, 2022
In the co-main event of UFC 281, the strawweight title is on the line as Carla Esparza looks to defend her belt for the first time as she takes on Zhang Weili. Heading into the fight, Esparza is a +285 underdog while the challenger is a massive -400 favorite on FanDuel. Ahead of the fight, BJPENN.com reached out to several pro-fighters to get their prediction for the scrap. The pros expect Weili to reclaim her strawweight title and even some expect her to finish Esparza.
Strawweight champion Carla Esparza booed at UFC 281 presser in New York (Video)
Andrew Whitelaw - November 9, 2022
Carla Esparza was given a harsh reception from the New York crowd at the UFC 281 pre-fight presser. Boos rang out in the Big Apple a the 115lb champ talked about having ‘unfinished business’ heading into her co-main event clash with Zhang Weili. The American became the inaugural UFC women’s strawweight champion when she beat Rose Namajunas to win the belt in 2014. But she failed to defend it after getting knocked out by Joanna Jędrzejczyk in her first title defence.
Rose Namajunas hopes for trilogy with Carla Esparza, but admits there isn't much fan interest: "I don’t know if I’d want to subject the fans to that"
Josh Evanoff - November 3, 2022
Former UFC women’s strawweight champion Rose Namajunas is back on the hunt for gold. ‘Thug Rose’ has been out of action since her rematch with Carla Esparza in May. Their first encounter eight years prior was one-sided traffic. Esparza dominated and won by submission to become the first UFC women’s strawweight champion.
Weili Zhang prepared to fight fearlessly against Carla Esparaza at UFC 281: "I don't care about win or lose anymore"
Josh Evanoff - August 30, 2022
UFC women’s strawweight contender Weili Zhang is prepared for her fight with Carla Esparza. ‘Magnum’ has been out of action since June. At UFC 275, Zhang faced Joanna Jędrzejczyk in a rematch of their famous brawl in March 2020. In that outing, the Chinese fighter won by split decision after five rounds of pure chaos.
Fight fans react after Carla Esparza books first title defense opposite Weili Zhang: “Well, that reign didn’t last long”
Harry Kettle - August 19, 2022
Fight fans have reacted to the news that Carla Esparza will defend the UFC strawweight championship against Weili Zhang. Ever since her controversial win over Rose Namajunas earlier this year, fans have been wondering what the next step is going to be for Carla Esparza. The veteran, who was the first ever champion in the weight class, is a legend in the strawweight division and is now a two-time champ as a result of her second triumph against ‘Thug Rose’.
Carla Esparza set to defend her strawweight title against Weili Zhang at UFC 281
Susan Cox - August 18, 2022
Carla Esparza in set to defend her strawweight title against Weili Zhang at UFC 281. Esparaza took to ‘Twitter‘ this morning announcing the bout:
Carla Esparza gives injury update, confirms she'll fight by end of 2022
Josh Evanoff - July 8, 2022
UFC strawweight champion Carla Esparza will be in the octagon by the end of the year. ‘Cookie Monster’ faced off against Rose Namajunas at UFC 274 in May. It was a rematch of their showdown in December 2014, where Esparza won via submission. At UFC 274, the latter moved to 2-0 in the series, as she defeated ‘Thug Rose’ by a split decision.
Carla Esparza not surprised by Joanna Jedrzejczyk’s retirement, says she “would’ve loved” a rematch
Harry Kettle - June 29, 2022
UFC strawweight champion Carla Esparza has admitted she would’ve liked the chance to have a rematch against Joanna Jedrzejczyk. While the way in which Carla Esparza became a two-time UFC champion was somewhat strange, there was nothing odd about how she submitted Rose Namajunas in 2014 to win the gold the first time around. Alas, her joy didn’t last long as just three months later, she was beaten by Joanna Jedrzejczyk as the Polish sensation went on to become one of the all-time greats in the division.
Carla Esparza discusses possible superfight with Valentina Shevchenko: "That would be scary"
Josh Evanoff - June 21, 2022
UFC women’s strawweight champion Carla Esparza isn’t very interested in fighting fellow titleholder Valentina Shevchenko. ‘Cookie Monster’ is fresh off her title-winning performance against Rose Namajunas last month. The victory saw her claim the 115-pound championship for the second time. However, the win over ‘Thug Rose’ was also labeled as one of the worst fights in UFC history.
Daniel Cormier gives take on Carla Esparza vs. Weili Zhang: "She might be the biggest challenger favorite ever"
Josh Evanoff - June 15, 2022
Daniel Cormier believes that UFC strawweight champion Carla Esparza will be a massive underdog to Weili Zhang. ‘Cookie Monster’ re-captured the UFC’s strawweight title following a win over Rose Namajunas last month. The win saw her move her win-streak to six, and become champion for the first time since 2015. However, her win over ‘Thug Rose’ was also blasted as one of the worst fights in UFC history.
Joanna Jedrzejczyk shares her prediction for Carla Esparza vs. Weili Zhang
Harry Kettle - June 13, 2022
Joanna Jedrzejczyk has given her thoughts on what will happen when Weili Zhang challenges Carla Esparza for the UFC strawweight title. Last Saturday night at UFC 275, Joanna Jedrzejczyk retired from mixed martial arts following her knockout defeat at the hands of Weili Zhang. The two put on a thoroughly entertaining rematch in Singapore and while Jedrzejczyk had a few nice moments, the evening belonged to Zhang as a spinning back fist was enough to put a definitive end to their rivalry.
Zhang Weili explains her idea for a UFC Strawweight Title fight against Carla Esparza
Fernando Quiles - June 12, 2022
Zhang Weili has an interesting idea for a UFC Strawweight Title fight against champion Carla Esparza. Zhang made it clear that she’s still an elite 115-pounder at UFC 275. She silenced the doubters by knocking Joanna Jedrzejczyk out cold with a spinning backfist in Singapore.
Chael Sonnen calls for Carla Esparza vs. Rose Namajunas 3: "We have to redo the match"
Josh Evanoff - May 13, 2022
Chael Sonnen has given an unpopular opinion. ‘The Bad Guy’ thinks the UFC should book a trilogy fight between Carla Esparza and Rose Namajunas. Last Saturday night at UFC 274, fans were witness to arguably the worst title fight in MMA history. Eight years after Esparza and Namajunas had an entertaining fight for the inaugural strawweight title, they had a terrible bout.
Joanna Jedrzejczyk sends a warning to newly crowned UFC champion Carla Esparza: “History likes to make a circle and I’m soon to be champ”
Harry Kettle - May 11, 2022
Joanna Jedrzejczyk has sent a warning to Carla Esparza following the latter’s win over Rose Namajunas at UFC 274. Next month at UFC 275, Joanna Jedrzejczyk will run it back with Zhang Weili as they square off in a number one contender match-up at strawweight. The victor is expected to go on and challenge for the belt later this year, and after UFC 274, we now know that Carla Esparza is the champion they’d be facing.
Carla Esparza reacts to commentary criticism during her fight with Rose Namajunas: "They were being real"
Josh Evanoff - May 9, 2022
UFC strawweight champion Carla Esparza understood the criticism she received from the broadcast booth. Last Saturday night at UFC 274, ‘Cookie Monster’ faced off against Rose Namajunas. The two had clashed eight years prior, with Esparza picking up the win to become strawweight champion. At UFC 274, she once again picked up the victory, but in a much different fashion.
What's next for the stars of UFC 274?
Cole Shelton - May 9, 2022
The UFC returned to Phoenix, Arizona for a stacked UFC 274 card where Charles Oliveira lost his lightweight title on the scale. In the main event, Oliveira still took on Justin Gaethje but it was only ‘The Highlight’ who could win the lightweight strap. The co-main event saw Rose Namajunas looking to defend her strawweight title against Carla Esparza.