🥊 FIVE REASONS GILLIAN ROBERTSON IS THE NEXT UFC STRAWWEIGHT CHAMPION — AND WHY TONIGHT MATTERS

By Cody Merrow | Fight Bananas

WHAT IS UP, Fight Bananas faithful. Cody Merrow here, and I am going to need you to clear your schedule tonight because Gillian “The Savage” Robertson is competing in the co-main event of UFC Fight Night 269 in Las Vegas,  and I don’t say this lightly,  she might be the most underrated star in the entire organization right now.

Tonight she faces former title challenger Amanda Lemos at the Meta APEX, and a win doesn’t just extend her streak to five. It punches her ticket to the title conversation in a division that, frankly, NEEDS her at the top. She’s currently sitting at around -210 to -245 on DraftKings depending on when you’re reading this, and if you want a prop with some juice, Robertson by submission is available at +285,  which, given everything you’re about to read, feels like a gift.

Here are five reasons Gillian Robertson is the next UFC Women’s Strawweight Champion. And yes, they are listed in order of importance. Try to keep up.

🥊 1. THE SAVAGE IS NOT JUST A NICKNAME — SHE FINISHES FIGHTS

Let’s lead with what matters most inside the octagon. Gillian Robertson holds 10 finishes in UFC women’s history,  tied with former two-division champion Amanda Nunes for the most ever. If she gets the job done tonight, she owns that record outright. That is not a talking point. That is a LEGACY.

She already holds the record for the most submission wins by any woman in UFC history. Seven of those have come inside the UFC octagon alone, and in a sport where women’s fights, especially at 115 pounds,  routinely go the scorecards, that finishing rate is extraordinary. Ten of her 13 UFC wins have come inside the distance, which would be an impressive figure for anyone, but especially for someone in the sport’s lightest weight class.

And here’s something that not enough people are talking about: Robertson threw the first legal 12-6 elbow under the Unified Rules of Mixed Martial Arts since they were legalized on November 1, 2024. The first one. EVER. She didn’t just adapt to the new rule change,  she pioneered it. Kenny Florian built a Hall of Fame career as one of the most devastating elbow artists in the sport’s history, and “The Savage” is quietly developing that same kind of calling card on the ground. Watch her work. It is not an accident.

Robertson is one of the most grappling-heavy fighters in the division, averaging 2.74 takedowns per 15 minutes while constantly hunting to get her opponent to the ground for submission opportunities. She doesn’t just take you down. She makes you MISERABLE down there, and then she finds a way to end it.

🥊 2. SHE IS ONE OF THE MOST MARKETABLE FIGHTERS THE UFC HAS — FULL STOP

Here is the thing though. The UFC Women’s Strawweight division is stacked with Brazilian and international stars. Robertson, 30, is on the best run of her career at 6-1 in her last seven appearances. But let’s be honest about who she’s sharing the division with,  Lemos, Marina Rodriguez, Luana Pinheiro, Yan Xiaonan, Iasmin Lucindo,  the 115-pound bracket reads like a São Paulo phone book at times. That is not a knock. Brazilian fighters are incredible. But for a promotion heading into the Paramount+ era that needs English-speaking, North American stars who can carry a camera and a crowd, the Florida-based Canadian is a unicorn.

Robertson has spent nearly a decade inside the UFC machine learning how to perform outside the cage just as well as she does inside it. She is comfortable, articulate, funny, and genuine on the microphone in a way that cannot be manufactured. She does not come across as coached. She comes across as herself,  and herself is COMPELLING. That is rarer than a title shot in this sport, and the UFC would do well to start treating it accordingly.

Rapid Fire🔥 Questions with UFC strawweight 🇨🇦 Gillian Robertson (@savage_ufc)

Full interview via @Ozoon_CA 👇https://t.co/aoZDfaxhYZ pic.twitter.com/jXrOGaQTjI

— James Lynch (@LynchOnSports) March 10, 2026

🥊 3. SHE IS ONE OF THE MOST PROLIFIC SUBMISSION ARTISTS IN UFC HISTORY — FULL STOP

We touched on this above but it deserves its own section because the numbers deserve to stand alone.

Robertson holds the record for most finishes in UFC women’s flyweight history with 10, tied with Amanda Nunes,  and a finish tonight gives her sole possession. She is a Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt under Din Thomas, one of the most respected coaches in the game. Robertson received her black belt from Thomas after nine years of work, describing the moment as emotional and joyous.

The submission record matters even more in context. Women’s MMA,  particularly at strawweight — is notoriously difficult to finish. Judges dominate. Decisions are the industry standard. Robertson’s average fight time sits at just over 10 minutes across her UFC career, which means she is consistently ending things before the scorecards even become a conversation. In a division where “fight of the night” usually means “nobody got finished,” she is actively going against the grain,  and WINNING.

If you are betting tonight, by the way: Lemos has been submitted in two of her last four losses and taken down in five straight fights. Robertson by submission at +285 on DraftKings is not a parlay lottery ticket. It is a legitimate strategic play.

Din Thomas talks Gillian Robertson vs Amanda Lemos this weekend and how it impacts the title picture pic.twitter.com/QdIYf18vsm

— Anik & Florian Podcast (@AnikFlorianPod) March 9, 2026

🥊 4. SHE SPEAKS TO A MARKET THE UFC HAS BARELY TOUCHED

Let’s be honest with ourselves here. Gillian Robertson is openly and authentically pro-cannabis — not in an attention-seeking way, not as a bit, and not as her entire personality. It is simply part of who she is.

Robertson is one of the few UFC fighters officially representing cannabis brands, including vaporizer company Dr. Dabber, and has spoken at length about using cannabis for cognitive openness, creativity, and recovery. She describes it as “opening up my mind” and developing different viewpoints and mindsets she wouldn’t otherwise access — a genuine therapeutic and mental benefit she articulates with clarity and intelligence.

She has taken her lumps for it too. Robertson was suspended for four-and-a-half months and fined $2,000 by the Nevada State Athletic Commission for a cannabis-related positive test — ironically on the same day that Nevada announced it was no longer disciplining fighters for marijuana use going forward. Bad timing. Great perspective. She didn’t run from it. She kept talking about it.

The cannabis community is a massive, largely untapped consumer base for combat sports. It skews young, digitally engaged, and fiercely loyal to authentic voices. Robertson is one of the most credible and natural connectors between that community and the UFC that the promotion has ever had under contract. The opportunity sitting in front of them is enormous if they choose to see it.

🥊 5. THE UFC NEEDS STARS — AND SHE IS RIGHT THERE

This is listed fifth, but do not for one second think it is the least important. It might be the most important. BUCKLE UP.

The UFC is entering the Paramount+ streaming era. The broadcast landscape has shifted. The promotion has openly acknowledged the challenge of building new stars at scale — and simultaneously, as Jon Anik himself said on a recent episode of the Anik & Florian Podcast, there is an admitted glut of elite talent that hasn’t necessarily translated to marquee mainstream names. Ilia Topuria and Alex Pereira are generational. But you cannot run a whole company on two guys.

The women’s strawweight division in particular has a star problem right now. Depending on the status of former champion Weili Zhang, who vacated the strawweight belt to challenge for the flyweight title, the title picture at 115 pounds has real opening for someone to step in and own it. Robertson has already staked her claim publicly — she said after her win over Marina Rodriguez: “I don’t see why I wouldn’t get a shot at Mackenzie Dern at this point,” and followed that by calling out the Lemos fight specifically as her next step toward the belt.

She is 30 years old. She is on a four-fight winning streak. She is the all-time submissions leader among women in UFC history. She speaks well, fights spectacularly, brings authentic niche market appeal, and has been doing this inside the UFC system for nearly a decade.

The UFC needs to BUILD HER. And tonight is the night to start.

🥊 THE FIGHT: ROBERTSON vs. LEMOS — TONIGHT, UFC FIGHT NIGHT 269

This fight has had a rough road just getting to fight night. Originally booked for December 13, 2025, Lemos was removed from the card by the Nevada Athletic Commission on the day of the event due to a mouth injury, and Robertson described processing it emotionally like a loss. Three months of built-up energy is now ready to be released inside the Meta APEX.

The matchup is a nightmare for Lemos on paper. Robertson is the betting favorite at around -200 to -245 depending on the book, with Lemos at +160 to +200 as the underdog. On DraftKings specifically, Robertson sits at -245 with 73% of bets and 61% of the handle backing her.

The stylistic breakdown is simple: Lemos is a dangerous striker with legitimate one-punch power, but she’s allowed more than three minutes of control time per takedown over her last three contests and generally accepts bottom position rather than trying to stand up — a relatively low-probability strategy in any matchup, but especially dangerous against Robertson.

The best bets on tonight’s board:

• Robertson moneyline: -210 to -245 (DraftKings)
• Robertson by submission: +285 (DraftKings) — this is the PLAY
• Lemos moneyline for the degenerate lottery: +165 to +200

The pick: Robertson makes Lemos tap out.

Watch it LIVE on Paramount+ tonight. Main card starts at 8 PM ET. You would do right to be there.

@savage_ufc & Amanda Lemos is now official for #UFCVegas112 😈 pic.twitter.com/G91cKq8DDE

— David Van Auken (@DavidVanAuken) December 12, 2025

Gillian Robertson is not a future star. She already IS one. The UFC just has to decide if they’re going to let the rest of the world in on it. Tonight is a damn good start.

LET’S GO. 🥊🔥

Butterfly sweep sneakily using her right elbow to block the knee. Love Gillian Robertson. She’s so cool pic.twitter.com/6k1BKeQWiq

— Josie Aldo (@JosieAldoMMA) November 10, 2024

— Cody Merrow is the Live Producer of The Anik & Florian Podcast and a lead writer for Fight Bananas. Formerly of MMA Underground and the Pound 4 Pound Podcast newsletter. Follow him on X: @cody_merrow

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