Women’s Strawweight
1. Rose Namajunas (7-3)
The first time Namajunas fought for an Ultimate Fighting Championship title, she was 22 years old and had all of three professional fights. A little less than three years later, her second UFC championship bid went, well, just a little bit better. In barely three minutes and as a 6-to-1 underdog, “Thug Rose” tore apart the pound-for-pound queen of the sport, leveling Joanna Jedrzejczyk with a left hook and pounding her out to take the gold and cinch up the 2017 “Upset of the Year.”2. Joanna Jedrzejczyk (14-1)
With five title defenses under her belt, Jedrzejczyk’s UFC 217 encounter with Rose Namajunas seemed like another day at the office for “Joanna Champion.” Well, we have to strike that nickname, at least for now, as the Polish standout was unseated in devastating fashion in New York. “Thug Rose” knocked her down and forced her to tap to strikes in barely three minutes, handing Jedrzejczyk the first loss of her pro career.3. Jessica Andrade (17-6)
When Andrade dropped from 135 to 115 pounds in June 2016, it was as if a beast had been unleashed. Yet, after three brutal wins, she was beaten like a drum for 25 minutes by Joanna Jedrzejczyk at UFC 211 in May. At UFC Fight Night 117 in Saitama, Japan, the “Piledriver” overcame a slow start to bloody and batter Gadelha, slamming and pounding her for the final 11 minutes of their bout to win a unanimous decision and change the outlook for the 115-pound division.4. Claudia Gadelha (15-3)
In her last two wins over Cortney Casey and Karolina Kowalkiewicz, it seemed Gadelha’s move to the United States to train with Luttrell-Yee MMA in Albuquerque, New Mexico, was paying rich dividends. However, “Claudinha’s” quest for a third crack at Joanna Jedrzejczyk and a second chance at her throne came to a screeching halt in Saitama, Japan, courtesy of Jessica Andrade. Gadelha started strong but faded after the first round, enduring a beating from her fellow Brazilian and dropping her previously ironclad No. 2 status in the division.5. Karolina Kowalkiewicz (11-2)
After starting her career 10-0, Kowalkiewicz suffered two back-to-back blowout losses to Joanna Jedrzejczyk in November and Claudia Gadelha in June. The “Polish Princess” got back into her groove in her homeland on Oct. 21, however, dominating Jodie Esquibel over 15 minutes at UFC Fight Night 118 in Gdansk, Poland, before calling out fellow recent title challenger Jessica Andrade.6. Tecia Torres (9-1)
Torres is undeniably one of the top strawweights in the world. As such, many 115-pounders are keen to dodge “The Tiny Tornado,” and the timing of her unanimous decision loss to imminent UFC title challenger Rose Namajunas in their April 2016 rematch hurt her case as a contender. Back-to-back wins over Bec Rawlings and Juliana Lima have Torres back on track, and she gets a high-profile face for her next outing at UFC 218, where she will meet Michelle Waterson on Dec. 2.7. Livia Renata Souza (11-1)
Since losing the Invicta Fighting Championships strawweight title to Angela Hill in May of last year, Souza has rebounded with a brutal beatdown of Invicta atomweight champ and pound-for-pound entrant Ayaka Hamasaki, as well as previously undefeated prospect Janaisa Morandin. Now, the 26-year-old Brazilian has signed with the UFC, where she figures to make an immediate impact in one of MMA’s very best divisions.8. Cortney Casey-Sanchez (7-4)
Fortunately for Casey-Sanchez, she got to hang on to her dominant May win over longtime divisional standout Jessica Aguilar after the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation flubbed her drug test and was forced to admit it. Having dodged that bullet of injustice, “Cast Iron” has caught a quality booking for her next UFC appearance. Casey-Sanchez faces the streaking Felice Herrig at UFC 218 on Dec. 2 in Detroit.9. Carla Esparza (12-4)
From the moment she became the first-ever UFC women’s strawweight champion, it has been win one-lose one for Esparza. The 30-year-old is coming off of a June decision victory over Ukraine’s Maryna Moroz, and if she wants to buck the recent trend of history and put together consecutive Octagon wins, it will be no easy task. The “Cookie Monster” is penciled in to face undefeated, fast-rising prospect Cynthia Calvillo at UFC 219 on Dec. 30.10. Cynthia Calvillo (6-0)
Outside of perhaps light heavyweight Volkan Oezdemir, no one in 2017 has made the sudden impression inside the Octagon that Calvillo has. The Team Alpha Male product has gone 4-0 on the year, with three of those wins coming in the Octagon, and now she has the chance to end the year and enter 2018 in the UFC strawweight title picture. Calvillo will look to push her pro record to 7-0 at UFC 219 on Dec. 30 in Las Vegas when she takes on the first-ever UFC 115-pound queen, Carla Esparza.Other Contenders: Nina Ansaroff, Felice Herrig, Angela Hill, Viviane Pereira, Tatiana Suarez
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