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Jessica Andrade aims to derail Natalia Silva’s ascent in the flyweight division when they clash in the co-main event of UFC Vegas 97 on Sept. 7, with her eyes set on a championship next.
The former UFC strawweight champion revealed to MMA Fighting that she will call for a title shot if she emerges victorious in Las Vegas next week, regardless of weight class, and advocated for the introduction of a women’s BMF title.
“I’ve been in talks with Joanna [Jedrzejczyk] and she’s on board. She would return for this [BMF] title fight,” Andrade mentioned. “I believe it would be a thrilling matchup. Joanna, or maybe Angela Hill, who never backs down from a challenge. Or Valentina [Shevchenko]. Any of them would make for an exciting fight, but I think Joanna would make it extra special.”
Andrade holds the record for most wins (17) and finishes (9) by a female UFC athlete in the octagon. Her impressive list of conquests includes Rose Namajunas, Mackenzie Dern, Amanda Lemos, and Karolina Kowalkiewicz.
In 2017, Andrade faced Jedrzejczyk in her first title shot at strawweight, falling short via decision, but rebounded two years later to claim the title by defeating Namajunas. Andrade also challenged Shevchenko for the 125-pound title in 2021, succumbing to a second-round knockout.
Jedrzejczyk’s victory over Andrade was her final title defense before suffering consecutive losses to Namajunas. The Polish star then made a successful return with a decision win over Tecia Pennington in 2018, before moving up in weight to vie for the flyweight title against Shevchenko, coming up short in a unanimous decision.
Jedrzejczyk’s last shot at UFC gold came in 2020, as she narrowly lost a split decision to 115-pound champion Zhang Weili in an epic battle. After a knockout defeat to Zhang in the rematch, Jedrzejczyk retired from MMA in 2022.
“[Jedrzejczyk] mentioned she would fight at 125, not at 115, which suits me just fine as I feel strong in this division as well,” Andrade stated. “I’m confident that we would deliver an exceptional fight, and I would seek redemption.”
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