Rose Namajunas, former two-time strawweight champion, joined CTV Morning Live’s Kent Morrison ahead of UFC Fight Night in Edmonton.
This transcript has been edited for length and clarity.
Kent Morrison: She’s the best, she’s the best, she’s the best. Former two-time strawweight champion Rose Namajunas will be headlining UFC Fight Night Nov. 2 here in Edmonton. Let’s start with your mantra, “I’m the best.” Where did that come from? What is that to you?
Rose Namajunas: I remember I was getting ready for one of my title defences and I had this belief inside of me that I know the only times that I’ve really lost fights is when I just didn’t do my best, or left a stone unturned. I always hung on to that belief that if I just do everything, that there’s a good chance that I’m going to come out victorious and I’m going to be the best. I still believe that and there’ll be one day where it’s not true anymore, but right now, I still believe that when I do my best, I am the best, and by the time the competition comes around, I’m the best because I did everything, so I’m here.
Kent: Have fans resonated with that since you started saying that and people catch it on TV?
Rose: Yeah, there’s definitely lots of people. Every time somebody sees me, they’re like, “you’re the best,” but it’s not just about being better than my competition. It’s all about being my best self, and doing the best that I can. I think we’re all the best, as long as we’re just putting our best foot forward and giving our best effort. People, this is crazy, but there have been people that had it tattooed on their chest. It’s crazy.
Kent: Wow. So here you are, you got a couple victories under your belt this year, coming into fight night on Nov. 2 here in Edmonton, taking on Erin Blanchfield. How does that challenge present itself and how are you preparing?
Rose: I’m basically just building momentum off of my last fight. It was a really good training camp. I’ve gotten to the point where a lot of moving parts in my life have kind of settled down, and I really feel like I’m on a good momentum right now. So I’ve been building off of that right now, and the last couple weeks, I focus on sharpening up my boxing. We had this Venezuelan champion boxer come in randomly to our gym, and it’s been really good to get those hard rounds in with her. Then working on all aspects of MMA, but that’s just something that we’ve been focusing on for the next couple weeks. Then from there, build and build as we get closer to the fight.
Kent: Now, there are a lot of Canadian fighters on this card coming to Edmonton on Nov. 2. How much do you know about the rest of the card? Or do you just focus on yourself?
Rose: I haven’t had a chance to really look at the rest of the card, but I’m really excited to start paying attention a little bit more. But, yeah, I didn’t know all that.
Kent: Yeah, it’s going to be good. Now, how much do you know about MMA fans here in Canada? Fans here are pretty well-known for being pretty rabid. Are you looking forward to performing in front of fans?
Rose: Yeah, I really am. I definitely know about the Canadian fans, that they’re super pumped, and they’re the best MMA fans in the world. I’m really excited to come here. I know my husband fought here two times. One of his fights was with Cro Cop and that was a super huge fight. I’m just looking forward to it. I feel like, if you’re an MMA fighter, fighting in Canada has to be on the bucket list for being a fighter. So I’m really excited to experience that.
Kent: I think it’s going to be a big night here, coming up in November. Rose, best of luck with camp. Looking forward to you returning here to Edmonton. There are plenty of Canadians, as mentioned here on the card. Tickets go on sale Friday at 10 in the morning. You can register by visiting rogersplace.com or on ufc.com.