Does Joanna Jedrzejczyk think she's the pound-for-pound queen? 'I'm still waiting for Ronda Rousey'

LAS VEGAS – At the TUF 23 Finale, Joanna Jedrzejczyk did what she does best, showcasing amazing endurance and calmness when faced with a stiff challenge from Claudia Gadelha.

The bout served as the FOX Sports 1-televised card’s main event from MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.

Gadelha (13-2 MMA, 2-2 UFC) controlled the first two rounds of the fight, but Jedrzejczyk (12-0 MMA, 6-0 UFC) weathered knockdowns and a constant barrage of takedowns and takedown attempts to take the fight over down the stretch. It was a quality performance for the women’s strawweight champion and the kind of showing that has earned her a place in the pound-for-pound discussion.

When asked at the post-fight news conference if she believes she’s the best fighter in women’s MMA, Jedrzejczyk gave a response that feels almost like a throwback.

“I don’t know,” Jedrzejczyk told MMAjunkie. “I’m waiting for Ronda Rousey. For me, she’s still the No. 1 and deserves to be the No. 1. She was the first one, and believe me, guys, she will be back soon.”

Rousey (12-1 MMA, 6-1 UFC) has not fought since her crushing knockout loss to Holly Holm at UFC 193 this past November. The title since moved from Holm to Miesha Tate after she scored a rear-naked choke to win the belt at UFC 196.

One fighter Jedrzejczyk knows she is ranked in front of is Gadelha. The two became bitter rivals after a close first fight was awarded to Jedrzejczyk at UFC on FOX 13 in December 2014.

After public sniping, the two were opposing coaches on the most recent Season 23 of “The Ultimate Fighter” and the bad blood was taken to a new level.

Jedrzejczyk seemed willing to put the ugliness behind her following her victory by scores of 48-46, 48-46 and 48-45, attempting to end the rivalry during her post-fight interview.

At the press conference, however, Gadelha shot down any hopes of ending the rivalry.

“No,” Gadelha said. “It’s not done. Never.”

Jedrzejczyk was asked about the in-cage moment and Gadelha’s subsequent refusal to bury the hatchet.

Rather than play the rivalry up once again, Jedrzejczyk continued her efforts to push past the harsh words of the past year and a half.

“If she doesn’t get it, I don’t mind,” Jedrzejczyk said. “I did what I felt I must do, that’s all. I’m humble and working so hard every day; I respect everyone. Everyone has someone in their life who they don’t like and you feel like this person can do something for you. I had those feeling with Claudia but not anymore. I closed everything that was between me and her.”

“Joanna Champion” is moving forward. She’ll just leave it up to Gadelha if she wants to come along.

For complete coverage of The Ultimate Fighter 23 Finale, check out the UFC Events section of the site.