Last Saturday, in the UFC Edmonton co-main eventwe saw a potential five-round title eliminator in the women’s flyweight division. Former strawweight champion “Thug” Rose Namajunas (13-7) was looking for her third straight win at 125 as she faced top contender Erin Blanchfield (13-2) who was looking to bounce back after his first defeat in the octagon.

In March in Atlantic City, Erin Blanchfield faced Manon Fiorot in a title eliminator which served as the main event. In this fight, Blanchfield never did anything with his wrestling and lost a clear decision to Fiorot. This was the second fight in a row where Blanchfield didn’t look great after a dominant start to his UFC career.

She had a golden opportunity to silence some critics on Saturday evening. However, these criticisms were very strong for two rounds. Blanchfield lost the first round to Rose Namajunas on all three scorecards. Namajunas looked sharper on the feet and Blanchfield couldn’t take the fight to the ground.

However, this is where Blanchfield’s cardio and determination really earned him some respect. As the Namajunas began to fade, Blanchfield grew strong. She used her wrestling successfully in the third and fifth rounds while relying on her pace and pressure to win the fourth round. All three judges gave him the final three rounds and a huge decision victory at UFC Edmonton.

What’s next after UFC Edmonton?

This was a massive victory for Erin Blanchfield. I’m not going to lie, within two rounds I thought we saw the immediate ceiling for Blanchfield. Not permanent, especially given she’s so young, but she hasn’t made enough progress to really be a championship threat at this point.

She had difficulty getting up and was unable to get ahead of Namajunas. However, she showed real tenacity and her cardio was top notch. Many fighters went down 2-0, but she rallied and won the biggest decision of her career. She still has a lot to work on, but she has earned her place atop the UFC flyweight rankings.

So what should be the next step? Honestly, I think there is a perfect fight that could allow him to qualify for the title with a victory. We know that Manon Fiorot will then challenge Valentina Shevchenko for the title. With that, I think Blanchfield should face former champion Alexa Grasso.

Grasso needs a new opponent and Blanchfield needs to test himself against someone like the former champion. This seems like the perfect fight for both.