Rose Namajunas will return to competition before the end of the year, but it won’t be inside the UFC octagon.
Namajunas, a former two-time UFC strawweight champion, has been booked in a grappling match against the person with the most submission wins in women’s UFC history, Gillian Robertson.
The match, which takes place at 135 pounds, will serve as the main event for FURY Pro Grappling 6, which takes place Dec. 30 at 2300 Arena in Philadelphia and streams on UFC Fight Pass.
“Competing in grappling was one of a few different goals I had for myself before I were to compete in fighting again,” Namajunas said in a statement. “I’m very grateful for this opportunity to compete for FURY grappling. I’m very excited.”
Namajunas, 30, hasn’t competed in MMA since April, when she lost UFC gold to Carla Esparza at UFC 274 in a heavily criticized title bout. She’ll get her chance to regain some momentum against Robertson, who is one of the most active fighters in women’s UFC history.
Robertson’s grappling prowess has been seen time and time again inside the UFC octagon, and she’s competed before under the FURY Pro Grappling banner. Robertson, 27, now looks to put her skills to use against a high-profile name in Namajunas.
“It’s great to be back with FURY for another extremely high-profile card,” Robertson said. “I am thankful for the opportunity to share the mat with such a notable opponent like Rose Namajunas. … We’re both scrappy and submission savvy, so you can expect it to be fight of the night.”