SCRAPP! FIGHT MAGAZINE
April - 2015
39
establish herself, however, and
that’s where the situation —
and strawweight in the UFC as
a whole — gets murky.
Because the division is so new,
few fighters have had scant
time to really establish them-
selves. The bulk of the division
was tied up on The Ultimate
Fighter 20 for a good chunk
of last year, with only a hand-
ful of names signed outside of
the show actively competing.
Jedrzejczyk was one of those.
The woman she beat to get the
title shot against Esparza, Clau-
dia Gadelha, was the favorite
heading into their bout, and
many expected her to be the
one to challenge Esparza. Hav-
ing lost a split decision to the
women who would go on to
become champion, however,
she’ll need a couple of wins to
get another crack (though the
UFC could try to push her after
one dominant performance).
Paige VanZant is one of the
breakout stars of the division,
meanwhile, having won big
in her debut in the fall. While
much of the focus has been on
her beauty (she’s a former mod-
el), she has a great chance for a
crack at a title shot next month
New Jersey, when she meets
Felice Herrig. Herrig is also 1-0
in the UFC, though much more
experienced then VanZant, and
also touted for her looks to the
point that her skill in the octa-
gon may be overlooked.
The reality is, however, that
VanZant is probably too green,
and while Herrig could have a
shot, the next title challenger
will probably come out of the
UFC’s visit to Poland, where
Gadelha takes on Aisling Daly,
and Joanne Calderwood meets
Maryna Moroz at UFC Fight
Night 64. Champ Jedrzejc-
zyk will be in attendance, and
there’s a good chance her first
title defense will be announced
that very night. While Gadelha
is ranked higher (second in the
division), Calderwood, who
is sixth, is extremely popular,
connected with audiences on
TUF, and is a native of Scot-
land, where a big UFC card
is scheduled this Summer in
Glasgow. With Gadelha’s loss,
Calderwood may find herself in
the right place at the right time
with a win.
The dark horse in the race is Te-
cia Torres. Having won her first
bout, against Angela Magana,
a win over Angela Hill at UFC
188 could put the Tiny Tornado
in striking distance, especially if
both Calderwood and Gadelha
fail to impress/lose at UFC Fight
Night 64. She’s ranked higher
than Herrig, and holds a win
over VanZant from their In-
victa days. She was also highly
touted as a possible winner of
TUF 20 heading into the show,
though somewhat behind
eventual winner Esparza.
Frankly, the division is up for
grabs right now. Jedrzejczyk
sits at the top coming off a
dominant win, but there are
a lot of girls gunning for her,
most of which will have simi-
lar records in the UFC come
Spring — a couple of wins. So
timing, and a compelling story-
line, may become everything,
in which case, either Calder-
wood or Gadelha (whose late
punch in her split decision loss
to Jedrzejczyk could become a
marketing tool) are likely to fill
the first challenger spot.
Who matches up best with the
champion? Well that’s another
matter entirely. Her stand-up
game looked top notch against
Esparza, as did her takedown
defense, but then Gadelha took
her to a split decision, so it’s
not as if she has simply steam-
rolled over every opponent on
her way to the belt. That said,
she’s undefeated, and one of
these fighters will need to step
up. Calderwood has heart, but
is her striking as crisp as Jedrze-
jczyk? Can Gadelha get it done
a second time?
If nothing else, fans should be
excited to find out, given how
entertaining Jedrzejczyk’s UFC
185 bout was.
