Rose Namajunas takes political jab at Weili Zhang ahead of UFC 261: “Better dead than red”

Rose Namajunas took a political jab at UFC women’s strawweight champion Weili Zhang ahead of UFC 261, saying “Better dead than red.”

Namajunas steps back into the Octagon on April 24 when she takes on Zhang with the 115lbs belt on the line. Ahead of the fight, “Thug” spoke to the Lithuanian National Radio and Television about the fight with Zhang. Namajunas suggested that because of her background as an American – Lithuanian and Zhang’s background as a Chinese fighter, there is extra motivation going into this matchup at UFC 261.

Rose’s “better dead than red” comments #UFC261 (https://t.co/1deEaDYGci) pic.twitter.com/eKWzv9UUIE

— Borrachinha Depot (@FullContactMTWF) April 11, 2021

“The animosity and things like that, those can be very motivating factors in short moments. But in all actuality going into the fight, maybe there was certain rivalries and things like that, but I always kept myself in control. I never really hated the person, and I don’t hate Weili or anything like that. There’s nothing… but I do feel as though I have a lot to fight for in this fight and what she represents,” Namajunas said (h/t MMAjunkie.com).

“I was just kind of reminding myself of my background and everywhere that I come from and my family and everything like that, and I kind of wanted to educate my training partner (Chico Camus) on the Lithuanian struggle and just the history of it all, so we watched ‘The Other Dream Team’ just to kind of get an overall sentiment of what we fight for. After watching that, it was just a huge reminder of like, yeah, it’s better dead than red, you know? And I don’t think it’s any coincidence that Weili is red. That’s what she represents,” continued Namajunas.

“It’s nothing personal against her, but that’s a huge motivating factor of why I fight, and I fight for freedom. I’ve got the Christ consciousness, I’ve got Lithuanian blood, and I’ve got the American dream. All of those things I’m taking with me into the fight.”

How do you think Weili Zhang will react to these comments from Rose Namajunas?