Tracking the championship: UFC women’s strawweight division

By Newsday.comNovember 6, 2017

The UFC added a women's strawweight division at the end of 2013, with the first 115-pound champion to be determined by the winner of the 20th season of "The Ultimate Fighter." Here’s the path of that championship belt.

Carla Esparza

Credit: Invicta FC

In Season 20 of "The Ultimate Fighter," the first season to feature all female fighters, Esparza defeated Rose Namajunas in the final to win the season and be crowned the UFC's inaugural champion of the new 115-pound strawweight division on Dec. 12, 2014.

Joanna Jedrzejczyk

Credit: Getty Images / Ronald Martinez

Successful title defenses: 5.
Joanna Jedrzejczyk stopped Carla Esparza, who was making her first title defense, in the second round via TKO at UFC 185 on March 14, 2015 in Dallas. Jedrzejczyk, from Poland, defended her title successfully five times en route to becoming one of the pound-for-pound best fighters. She was 14-0 before losing to Rose Namajunas at UFC 217.

Rose Namajunas

Credit: Mario Gonzalez

Rose Namajunas celebrates her first-round knockout for the upset win over Joanna Jedrzejczyk to win the strawweight title at UFC 217 at Madison Square Garden on Nov. 4, 2017.