(ALSO SEE: Mick Maynard’s Shoes: What’s next for Rose Namajunas after UFC on ESPN 59 win?)
Tracy Cortez rolled the dice by filling in as a replacement for the UFC on ESPN 59 main event against Rose Namajunas, and ultimately it didn’t pay off.
Cortez (11-2 MMA, 5-1 UFC) saw her perfect octagon record come to an end Saturday with a unanimous decision loss to former women’s strawweight champion Namajunas (13-6 MMA, 11-5 UFC) in the women’s flyweight bout at Ball Arena in Denver. With that outcome are questions about the future of Cortez.
There are plenty of built-in excuses for why the fight didn’t go her way, but ultimately it’s on Cortez to rebuild and reset. Whether the 30-year-old can do that or not remains to be seen, but Cortez gained valuable experience over five rounds that she can take forward, and it appears she wants a quick return to action.
Is this Cortez’s ceiling, or can she continue to flourish in the face of adversity? Watch the video above for thoughts and analysis on Cortez’s future after UFC on ESPN 59.
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ESPN 59.