- Tatiana Suarez said she wouldn’t mind fighting Rose Namajunas next
- The 32-year-old doesn’t think there’s a fighter who could match her grappling
As she edges closer to her long-awaited UFC return, Tatiana Suarez shared her honest take on Rose Namajunas’ potential move up to the flyweight division. For Suarez, a fight with Namajunas is something she’d be down for at any weight class.
Whatever weight class is OK
In a recent interview with The Schmo, Suarez was quizzed to name a fighter she would fancy facing next now that she’s making her debut at 125. According to the 32-year-old, she’s not really aware of what’s been going on in the division but would love to take on “Thug” next at flyweight.
Suarez quickly followed it up by admitting, truth be told, she’s open to fighting Namajunas even at 115 as she is certain there’s no way “Thug” is better than her.
“I think I heard that Rose is may be going up [to 135] right? I wouldn’t mind making that my next fight at 125. If I’m being honest, I would love that fight at any weight class cause I do believe that I could beat her. I do believe that. Believe that 100% I can beat her,” Suarez said. “I think that my grappling is so superior to her grappling and I think I’d make it a nightmare for her and at either weight class, I’d be strong at 125 or 115.”
There’s only one good grappler in the division
When asked who among the current flyweight contenders could possibly match her grappling, Suarez outright said none. However, she later recognized the jiu-jitsu of No. 10 women’s flyweight contender Erin Blanchfield.
“I think Erin Blanchfield has a good solid fundamental jiu-jitsu. I think she really has good jiu-jitsu. She’s impressive [but] I don’t think her wrestling is that great but I do think her jiu-jitsu is pretty decent like pretty good,” Suarez assessed.
Before suffering from a series of setbacks due to injuries, Suarez was on a five-fight winning streak in the UFC and has an undefeated record of 8-0.
Suarez was first scheduled to make her return at UFC 266 against Roxanne Modafferi but got injured halfway through and was forced to withdraw from the fight. She is set for another UFC comeback at UFC Vegas 70 against Montana De La Rosa next month.
Namajunas, meanwhile, is coming off a title fight loss to Carla Esparza at UFC 274.
