Charles Oliveira and Rose Namajunas are about to be tested again.
A month away from their upcoming title defenses, Oliveira and Namajunas — No. 1 in their respective divisions in the MMA Fighting Global Rankings — are featured prominently on the poster for UFC 274, which takes place May 7 at Footprint Center in Phoenix.
See the poster below:
Oliveira seeks the second defense of his lightweight title and his 11th straight victory. He has finished nine of his past 10 opponents, including Dustin Poirier who he defeated by third-round submission at UFC 269 in December. “Do Bronx” has to fend off Justin Gaethje, a former interim champion who is getting his second crack at an undisputed title.
Namajunas and Esparza square off in a rematch of their Ultimate Fighter 20 finals bout in December 2014 that Esparza won by third-round submission to become the UFC’s inaugural strawweight champion. Namajunas won the title two times and now she is set to defend the belt for the third time. Esparza has won five consecutive victories to get her shot at the “Thug Rose ” title.
See the updated UFC 274 pay-per-view card below. It is currently being finalized.
( Numbers in parentheses signify MMA Fighting Global Rankings position )
Charles Oliveira (1) vs. Justin Gaethje (3)
Rose Namajunas (1) vs. Carla Ezparza (3)
Donald Cerrone and Joe Lauzon
Ovince Saint Preux vs. Mauricio Rua
Michael Chandler (6) vs. Tony Ferguson (7)
Macy Chiasson vs. Norma Dumont
Lupita Godinez vs. Ariane Carnelossi
Blagoy Ivanov vs. Marcos Rogerio de Lima
Kleydson Rodrigues vs. CJ Vergara
Journey Newson vs. Fernie Garcia
Brandon Royval (9) vs. Matt Schnell
Michael Johnson vs. Alan Patrick
Francisco Trinaldo vs. Danny Roberts
Randy Brown vs. Khaos Williams
Tracy Cortez vs. Melissa Gatto
