MMA

Joanna Jedrzejczyk Named to UFC Hall of Fame Class of 2024

Joanna Jedrzejczyk is set to be inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame.

During the UFC 299 broadcast, it was announced that former UFC Strawweight Champion, Joanna Jedrzejczyk will be inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame’s class of 2024.

From UFC:

JOANNA JEDRZEJCZYK NAMED TO UFC HALL OF FAME CLASS OF 2024

Las Vegas – UFC today announced that former UFC strawweight champion Joanna Jedrzejczyk will be inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame’s ‘Modern Wing’ as a member of the Class of 2024. Joanna will enter the Hall of Fame as the second female inductee in UFC history and first from the strawweight division.

The 2024 UFC Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony will take place as part of the 12th Annual UFC International Fight WeekÔ, on Thursday, June 27, at T-Mobile Arena, and will be streamed live exclusively on UFC FIGHT PASS.

“Joanna is one of the greatest athletes in combat sports history,” UFC CEO Dana White said. “Joanna is an amazing person who has been an incredible champion, ambassador, and role model for women’s MMA, as well as an absolute killer inside the Octagon. She fought the best of the best in her division and never backed down from an opponent. Joanna is one of the toughest athletes we’ve ever seen, and it will be an honor to induct her into the UFC Hall of Fame this summer during International Fight Week.”

Joanna will enter the UFC Hall of Fame as the 13th member of the Modern Wing, joining former UFC lightweight champion Frankie Edgar as part of this year’s class. The “Modern Era” category includes athletes who turned pro on or after November 17, 2000 (when the first UFC event under the unified rules of MMA was held), are a minimum age of 35, or who have been retired for one year or more.

A veteran of 21 fights during her 10-year professional MMA career, Joanna compiled a record of 16-5 (10-5 UFC), securing victories over former UFC strawweight champions Carla Esparza and Jessica Andrade.

Joanna made her professional MMA debut on May 19, 2021, winning her first fight via unanimous decision. She would win her next five fights across five MMA promotions for the next two years before joining UFC with a 6-0 record.

Joanna made her UFC debut on the FIGHT PASS prelims of UFC ON FOX: LAWLER vs. BROWN, which took place on July 26, 2014, at SAP Center in San Jose, Calif. Joanna defeated Juliana Lima via unanimous decision to continue her winning streak.

She returned to the Octagon five months later in December to face Claudia Gadelha on the prelims of UFC ON FOX: DOS SANTOS vs. MIOCIC in a strawweight title elimination bout.

Joanna defeated Gadelha via split decision to become the number-one contender of the division and face then-champion Carla Esparza at UFC 185: PETTIS vs. DOS ANJOS. UFC 185: PETTIS vs. DOS ANJOS took place on March 14, 2015, at the American Airlines Center in Dallas, Tex. Joanna took control of the fight early and scored TKO in the second round to become UFC’s first Polish-born champion and first female European UFC champion. She would defend the strawweight championship five times over the next two years, setting a record for most title defenses in the division and decisively winning each fight.

Joanna would lose her next two fights against former UFC strawweight champion Rose Namajunas in the co-main events of UFC 217 and UFC 223, ending a streak of 14 consecutive victories as a professional MMA athlete.

Joanna returned to the Octagon on July 28, 2018, to face Tecia Torres on the main card of UFC ON FOX: ALVAREZ vs. POIRIER 2. She would defeat Torres via a unanimous decision and move to flyweight to vie for the vacant title against Valentina Shevchenko.

Joanna would lose to Shevchenko and return to strawweight to face Michelle Waterson-Gomez, headlining UFC FIGHT NIGHT: JOANNA vs. WATERSON on October 19, 2019, at Amalie Arena in Orlando. Fla. She would win via unanimous decision and earn a title shot against then-UFC strawweight champion Zhang Weili in the co-main event at UFC 248: ADESANYA vs. ROMERO.

UFC 248: ADESANYA vs. ROMERO took place on March 7, 2020, at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Both athletes consistently traded punches back and forth for five rounds, with Zhang winning via split decision in what is widely considered to be one of the greatest fights in UFC history. During the fight, Joanna landed 186 significant strikes on Zhang, which marks the third-most in UFC strawweight history. She retired in June 2022 after losing her rematch to Weili at UFC 275: TEIXEIRA vs. PROCHAZKA.

Joanna Jedrzejczyk Career Accolades

  • Most significant strikes landed in UFC women’s history – 1,754
  • Most title fight wins in UFC strawweight history – 6
  • Highest rate of significant strikes per minute in UFC strawweight history – 6.59
  • Highest significant strike differential per minute in UFC strawweight history – +3.37
  • Longest winning streak in UFC strawweight history – 8
  • Tied for most wins in UFC strawweight history – 10

Fightful has all of your MMA needs covered. Follow us on Twitter for updates, and subscribe to our YouTube channel for ‘Fightful Fight Night’ watch alongs for all major MMA and Boxing events!

Related Articles

Back to top button