Jędrzejczyk 'scared' of fighting Kowalkiewicz? Really!?
Jędrzejczyk 'scared' of fighting Kowalkiewicz? Really!?
By Jim EdwardsMuch of the talk following Karolina Kowalkiewicz's impressive win over Rose Namajunas last evening turned quickly to whether we would see an a
By Jim Edwards
Much of the talk following Karolina Kowalkiewicz's impressive win over Rose Namajunas last evening turned quickly to whether we would see an all Polish showdown between Kowalkiewicz and the UFC strawweight champion Joanna Jędrzejczyk.
Kowalkiewicz campaigned hard for the Polish showdown as soon as the fight with Namajunas was over, stating in her post-fight interview in the Octagon: "I know Joanna, I respect her very much. She is the best in the world, I will fight her and I will beat her."
Kowalkiewicz then continued the campaign in the post-fight press conference an hour later and even interrupted UFC Vice President of Public Relations & Athlete Marketing Dave Sholler to make her point.
"Can I say something? I want to fight Joanna, I am ready for her," Kowalkiewicz said. "She said I'm not on her level. I think I am good enough to fight with her. This is Polish power versus Polish power."
While that is well and good, everything got a little silly the moment when Kowalkiewicz was asked why Jędrzejczyk might not be so keen to lock horns with her and she responded: "I don't know why. I think she's scared."
Jędrzejczyk 'scared' of fighting Kowalkiewicz? Really!?
It's a little-known fact that the two fought previously back in their amateur days in 2012 and on that evening, it was Jędrzejczyk who prevailed, winning the fight by submission inside the first round.
[tweet url="https://twitter.com/MMA_Jim/status/759718111775817728" hide_media="0" hide_thread="1"]
It's preposterous to claim that Jędrzejczyk would be scared to fight anyone, let alone someone she's already beaten.
At this point in time, it's impossible to say what the champion does really think. Jędrzejczyk is currently on a beach somewhere enjoying a very well deserved break and so she should be.
[tweet url="https://twitter.com/joannamma/status/759069282412204037" hide_media="0" hide_thread="1"]
All we can look at right here right now are the comments Jędrzejczyk's made last week when she was asked about the possibility of the fight.
"If Karolina beats Rose then I think she will have one more fight before she gets her shot at the title," Jędrzejczyk said at a UFC fan Q&A. "But, yes I can fight in New York this year and then I can fight in Poland against Karolina Kowalkiewicz if she deserves it."
The question isn't whether Jędrzejczyk is scared, but rather does she think Kowalkiewicz deserves it? More to the point, the real question is, do the UFC really care what Jędrzejczyk thinks?
The facts as we know them are that Kowalkiewicz wants the fight, the UFC want the fight and it sounds like the champion isn't going to need much convincing.
This could be a massive money pay per view fight and the venue options aren't exactly limited with New York, England and of course, Poland all sure fire sell outs. If this fight does end up happening it would be a historic night on so many different levels and not just for the women in the Octagon.
Much of the talk following Karolina Kowalkiewicz's impressive win over Rose Namajunas last evening turned quickly to whether we would see an all Polish showdown between Kowalkiewicz and the UFC strawweight champion Joanna Jędrzejczyk.
Kowalkiewicz campaigned hard for the Polish showdown as soon as the fight with Namajunas was over, stating in her post-fight interview in the Octagon: "I know Joanna, I respect her very much. She is the best in the world, I will fight her and I will beat her."
Kowalkiewicz then continued the campaign in the post-fight press conference an hour later and even interrupted UFC Vice President of Public Relations & Athlete Marketing Dave Sholler to make her point.
"Can I say something? I want to fight Joanna, I am ready for her," Kowalkiewicz said. "She said I'm not on her level. I think I am good enough to fight with her. This is Polish power versus Polish power."
While that is well and good, everything got a little silly the moment when Kowalkiewicz was asked why Jędrzejczyk might not be so keen to lock horns with her and she responded: "I don't know why. I think she's scared."
Jędrzejczyk 'scared' of fighting Kowalkiewicz? Really!?
It's a little-known fact that the two fought previously back in their amateur days in 2012 and on that evening, it was Jędrzejczyk who prevailed, winning the fight by submission inside the first round.
[tweet url="https://twitter.com/MMA_Jim/status/759718111775817728" hide_media="0" hide_thread="1"]
It's preposterous to claim that Jędrzejczyk would be scared to fight anyone, let alone someone she's already beaten.
At this point in time, it's impossible to say what the champion does really think. Jędrzejczyk is currently on a beach somewhere enjoying a very well deserved break and so she should be.
[tweet url="https://twitter.com/joannamma/status/759069282412204037" hide_media="0" hide_thread="1"]
All we can look at right here right now are the comments Jędrzejczyk's made last week when she was asked about the possibility of the fight.
"If Karolina beats Rose then I think she will have one more fight before she gets her shot at the title," Jędrzejczyk said at a UFC fan Q&A. "But, yes I can fight in New York this year and then I can fight in Poland against Karolina Kowalkiewicz if she deserves it."
The question isn't whether Jędrzejczyk is scared, but rather does she think Kowalkiewicz deserves it? More to the point, the real question is, do the UFC really care what Jędrzejczyk thinks?
The facts as we know them are that Kowalkiewicz wants the fight, the UFC want the fight and it sounds like the champion isn't going to need much convincing.
This could be a massive money pay per view fight and the venue options aren't exactly limited with New York, England and of course, Poland all sure fire sell outs. If this fight does end up happening it would be a historic night on so many different levels and not just for the women in the Octagon.