Joanna Jedrzejczyk in good mental state for Rose Namajunas rematch at UFC 223, coach says

Taking the first loss of your career after five years unbeaten is a bitter pill to swallow. To have that cost you a UFC title, in emphatic fashion, in a highly watched meeting that would later earn “Upset of the Year” honors?

As octagon history has shown, that’s the type of thing that can really do a number on one’s psyche.

But not to former UFC strawweight champion Joanna Jedrzejczyk — at least according to American Top Team coach Mike Brown, who’ll be in her corner for Saturday’s UFC 223 title rematch with champ Rose Namajunas.

“I thought that she handled (the loss) very well,” Brown told MMAjunkie Radio. “Handled it better than most people would. Handled it better than I would. She recognized what happened, and I felt that she moved on quickly. She is a very strong mind, smart girl, and I think she’s in a good place mentally.”

In fact, if there’s one thing Brown has learned from working with Jedrzejczyk, it’s not to doubt the power of her mind.

“I think, to me, her two best attributes are her incredible conditioning and mental toughness,” Brown said. “Those are the two things that stand out. Also, obviously, she has very good techniques, specifically kickboxing techniques. She’s very clean, very clean technique, very good defense, very tough to hit.

“But what really stands out is her mental toughness. Whatever she is told, she will do. Whether it’s run 30 miles or do a thousand push-ups, whatever needs to be done, she doesn’t mind paying the price. She’s a soldier in that way.”

Confidence certainly doesn’t seem to be an issue for Jedrzejczyk (14-1 MMA, 8-1 UFC), who meets Namajunas (7-3 MMA, 5-2 UFC) in the pay-per-view co-headliner at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, N.Y. Since losing the title to “Thug” Rose at UFC 217 after five successful defenses, the former champion has been clear on her thoughts as to who is the belt’s rightful owner.

“I’m the best strawweight in the world, and I will prove that on April 7,” Jedrzejczyk said during a conference call ahead of UFC 223. “I could not stand someone fighting for the belt before me, because this is my belt and I will prove that to all of you guys.”

Jedrzejczyk has also repeatedly pointed to a key culprit when it comes to that first loss: a botched weight cut that left her drained and unable to recover on time. That, as we know, ultimately led the ex-champ to part ways with her her nutrition team.

When it comes to the work at the gym, though, there was no reinventing the wheel after the Polish strawweight’s first setback.

“I think it’s hard to pull something out of a short fight, and you can’t second-guess everything that you’ve done,” Brown said. “There are some reasons why we feel that this happened. Of course, we made some changes, and we’re always trying to get better. We’re not trying to just get better for this fight, we’re trying to get better for future fights.

“We just want to be the best fighter we can and always try to evolve our game in all aspects. Whether it’s takedowns, on-the-mat grappling or the stand-up position, it’s a constant evolution. We made some changes, specifically geared for this fight, but we’ll see that on Saturday night.”

For more on UFC 223, check out the UFC Rumors section of the site.

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