Dana White Praises Rose Namajunas' Willingness To Defend Her Belt In Hostile Territory

Rose Namajunas will have arguably the toughest fight of her career on Saturday night when she takes on heavy-handed Brazilian Jessica Andrade in the main event of UFC 237 in Rio de Janeiro in what will be Namajunas’ first-ever professional fight outside of the United States.

“Thug Rose,” as she is affectionately known, is taking a risk to attempt to defend her title in front of what will likely be a hostile crowd in Brazil, something that Ultimate Fighting Championship President Dana White has lauded Namajunas for considering that she’s never fought abroad.

White was interviewed on the Jim Rome Show and said people are underestimating Namajunas, but she’s proved time and time again she can fight through adversity.

“This is a really tough fight for [Namajunas]. Andrade is a beast, an absolute beast,” White said. “A lot of people think Andrade is going to run right through Rose but let’s not forget Rose beat Joanna Jedrzejczyk twice and everybody on her way to get to Joanna Jedrzejczyk. She looks better every time she fights.

“This is one of those fights I have no idea how this is going to go,” White added. “I get why Rose is the underdog but people are underestimating Rose once again.”

White said a lot of non-Brazilian fighters are reluctant to accept bookings on a Brazilian card out of concern over partisan officiating or judging, but praised Namajunas for taking the fight without hesitation.

“A lot of people will not go down to Brazil,” White said. “They fear that they don’t get the right call from the judges and the crowd is so hostile. It’s basically Brazil versus the world.”

“When I tell you this, we called Rose Namajunas and told her this fight and told her that she was going to be defending her title in Brazil, on Andrade’s home turf, [she] didn’t even flinch. Didn’t even question it. Nothing. She just accepted the fight and I have a lot of respect for her for that.”