SUMMARY
- Rose Namajunas defeated Amanda Ribas via unanimous decision in the main event of UFC Vegas 89.
- Fans, however, were left unconvinced with her performance and felt the fight was boring.
Amanda Ribas vs. Rose Namajunas went the distance at UFC Vegas 89. The flyweight bout saw the women fight it out for 25 minutes and it was ‘Thug Rose’ who came out the winner via unanimous decision. The former UFC Strawweight Champion, however, seems to have lost the fans a little. Many were discontent with how she fought tonight while many thought she did not even deserve to win.
The fighters started the bout with a good pace getting some good strikes in. Ribas continued to look for takedowns as they exchanged strikes. With less than two minutes left, Ribas got Namajunas down but the American rolled over and spent the last 90 or so seconds on top.
#UFCVegas89 Official Scorecard: Amanda Ribas vs Rose Namajunas 👇
All Scorecards ➡️: https://t.co/LizxNAMk1R pic.twitter.com/M2L5gi0QZV
— UFC News (@UFCNews) March 24, 2024
The fight became increasingly less exciting with lesser and lesser action. In the second round, Namajunas got some strikes in consistently while Ribas hit her with a spinning back-kick to the body. Moving to the third round, it was more of the same as the first two. Ribas tried to make it ugly without much footwork in the fight while Namajunas declined to engage. The Brazilian was on top and landed some strong elbows by the end of the round.
The fourth and fifth rounds were a lot of Ribas missing her shots and Namajunas not trying to hit too many. They did get some strikes in and the fourth round was a very closely fought one. However, in the end, it was up for grabs for anyone.
The judges decided to score the fight 49-46, 49-46, and 48-47 in favor of Rose Namajunas. Thug Rose successfully broke her two-fight streak but could not get back the fans who thought her fights had become boring.
Fans criticize Rose Namajunas’ performance against Amanda Ribas at UFC Vegas 89
Namajunas’s fight against Carla Esparza for the strawweight title is rated by many as the worst title fight in the UFC. Before that fight, Rose Namajunas was in the GOAT debate, however, after it, she was not considered anywhere near that title anymore. Many fans were again left unimpressed with her fight. They even believed that she did not deserve the win.
Rose is such a bore. And besides being on top, didn’t do anything to convince me she won that fight…
— Moneyline Dice (@MoneylineDice) March 24, 2024
One fan wrote, “Rose is such a bore. And besides being on top, didn’t do anything to convince me she won that fight…” Another wrote, “Boring. After her fight with Carla she fights boring & scared.”
Boring. After her fight with Carla she fights boring & scared
— Random (@Aj23_NYC) March 24, 2024
Many fans thought Ribas won the encounter. One fan wrote, “Robbery, 3,4 and 5 for Ribas.” Another fan wrote, “Ribas won but whatever!” A third fan wrote, “Rose did no damage whatsoever. Ribas won 49-48.”
The fans and judges have given their verdict. Let’s see what story is told by the stats of the UFC Vegas 89 main event.
Amanda Ribas vs. Rose Namajunas: Stats
Over the 25 minutes, Namajunas expectedly outstruck Ribas in total and significant strikes. According to UFC, Namajunas struck 169 of 281 total strikes and 93 of 188 significant strikes. On the other hand, Ribas struck 137 of 342 total strikes and 83 of 270 significant strikes.
Ribas earned more success when it came to takedowns as she achieved 4 takedowns in 8 attempts while Namajunas achieved 1 takedown in 3 attempts. Thug Rose had almost seven minutes of control time in comparison to the Brazilian’s 1:38 minutes.
Stats-wise, the fight was evenly fought but Namajunas prevailed by a slight margin. The former two-time strawweight champion called out for either the winner of the Erin Blanchfield vs. Manon Fiorot fight or Maycee Barber, in her post-fight interview.
