UFC Fight Night Denver: Fighters to Watch

When the UFC 303 festivities start winding down, the world’s Top mixed martial arts promotion is gearing up for its next big event in Denver, Colorado. The anticipation is palpable, and we can't wait to see what Dana White and his team have in store for their long-awaited return (6 years) to the Mile-High City.

Denver's UFC history is rich; it hosted the first-ever live pay-per-view event (UFC 1), after all. So, we can expect an enthusiastic crowd, but more importantly, a line-up of eager martial artists looking to brutalize their opponents in the octagon to deliver an unforgettable night of MMA action.

That said, let’s dive into the most noteworthy fighters competing at UFC Denver, as the following martial artists who are scheduled to compete in Colorado on July 13 are definitely worth tuning in for.

The Main Event Attraction: Rose Namajunas

Who better to headline an event in Denver than a former women’s champion who’s been fighting out of and has lived in the state of Colorado for some time? Nobody!

This weekend, "Thug" Rose Namajunas makes her 16th Octagon appearance as she prepares for her third appearance as a flyweight at UFC Fight Night: Denver. The two-time 115lb champion faces a short-notice opponent, Tracy Cortez, as an originally scheduled bout with Maycee Barber was canceled due to an injury.

• Namajunas debuted in the UFC in December 2014, when she competed against Carla Esparza at TUF: A Champion Will Be Crowned finals event.
• Namajunas has accumulated a total of six post-fight bonuses in her career, consisting of UFC Performance of the Night (X3) and UFC Fight of the Night (x3).
• "Thug" shares the record for the highest number of finishes in the UFC strawweight class, having achieved five.
• Namajunas has won the strawweight championship twice. She initially acquired the title in November 2017 after defeating Joanna Jędrzejczyk. Her second reign started with her victory against Zhang Weili at UFC 261 in April 2021.

The Head-Kick Heard Around the World

As far as highlight reel performances go, few women’s division competitors can match Namajunas’ title-winning head-kick efforts from 2021.

Following Weili Zhang's remarkable defense of her championship against Joana Jędrzejczyk in the highly acclaimed Fight of the Year at UFC 248, it seemed inevitable that she would face Namajunas at some point.

The two finally crossed paths at the UFC's inaugural event, with spectators present since the onset of the COVID-19 epidemic. The battle ended quickly when Namajunas landed a powerful head kick a little over a minute into the bout, marking another significant and emotionally intense achievement for Namajunas via the head kick, which was heard around the world!

"Thus Rose" & Her Quest to Becoming a Two-Division Champion

Namajunas now prepares to face Tracy Cortez, who’s undefeated (5-0) in the UFC. As a former two-time strawweight champion, a significant win for Rose at UFC Denver could position her straight into the title picture, and the status of becoming a two-division titleholder gets closer within her grasp.

Expect a striker versus grappler matchup when Namajunas and Cortez lock horns, with the former notably owning a significant advantage in the stand-up game. However, originally bursting onto the scene as a BJJ specialist, “Thug Rose” could and should be favored to end the impressive win streak of her opponent.

Rose Namajunas vs. Tracy Cortez Odds

In her originally scheduled flyweight bout with Maycee Barber, Namajunas entered as the bookmakers’ betting underdog. Since the opponent change, this wagering position has taken a U-turn, as the underdog is now poised for success with new online oddsmakers backing her as the favorite.

Rose Namajunas [-185]

Tracy Cortez [+160]

Christian Rodriguez: The Young Prospect Beating All the Prospects

Christian Rodriguez, with a record of 11 wins and 1 loss, has won his last four UFC fights consecutively after dropping his debut bout versus Jonathan Pearce. In his most recent bout this past March, the 26-year-old from Milwaukee, Wisconsin, emerged victorious over Isaac Dulgarian by means of a split decision to further solidify the unofficial moniker of “The Prospect Killer.”

Alongside Dulgarian, Rodriguez has defeated Cameron Saaiman, Raul Rosas Jr., and Joshua Weems, three of which were undefeated prospects prior to facing “CeeRod.” He’s walked out of the octagon victorious as the betting underdog in 3 of his 5 UFC bouts, but at UFC Denver, he could switch from “The Prospect Killer” to the “Veteran Killer” as he’ll face his most experienced opponent to date.

Erosa, 34, holding a professional record of 29-11-0, is undoubtedly the most experienced foe of Rodriguez’s short career. However, and in contrast to most of his scheduled bouts to date, he’ll enter this fight as a significant betting favorite [-258]. After his emphatic in-cage performances to date, these betting odds are justified, and we should expect another barnburner of a performance from the featherweight prospect who’s defeated a slew of prospects.

UFC Denver Complete Fight Card (So Far):

• Rose Namajunas vs. Tracy Cortez [Main Event – Women’s Flyweight Bout]
• Gabriel Confirm vs. Ange Loosa [Main Card – Men’s Welterweight Bout]
• Santiago Ponzinibbio vs. Muslim Salikhov [Main Card – Men’s Welterweight Bout]
• Luana Santos vs. Mariya Agapova [Prelim Bout – Women’s Flyweight]
• Viviane Araujo vs. Jasmine Jasudavicius [Prelim Bout – Women’s Flyweight]
• Cody Brundage vs. Abdul Razak Alhassan [Prelim Bout – Men’s Middleweight]
• Christian Rodriguez vs. Julian Erosa [Prelim Bout – Men’s Featherweight]
• Josh Fremd vs. Andre Petroski [Prelim Bout – Men’s Middleweight Bout]

(Card/Bout order subject to change.)

With only eight scheduled fights for UFC Denver thus far, we can expect the UFC to announce at least another 3-5 fights. Notably, Mike Mallot and Gilbert Urbina were set to compete in the co-main event. Still, since the former withdrew due to an injury, we expect the promotion to adjust and deliver a top-tier bout for this spotlighted position on the fight card.

In addition to the cancellation of the Barber vs. Namajunas and Mallot vs. Urbina, UFC Denver has also suffered the loss of an exciting lightweight match-up between Drew Dober and Mike Davis, as well as the Chris Duncan vs. Nazim Sadykhov bout.