Carla Esparza reveals potential timeline for her next fight in the UFC

UFC strawweight Carla Esparza has revealed her potential timeline for fighting again later this year.

Esparza, who is now riding a five-fight win streak, dominated Yan Xiaonan last Saturday night to cement herself as the new number one contender in the division.

'Cookie Monster' was able to take Xiaonan down and get in some really solid groundwork, to the point where she finished Yan via some brutal ground and pound strikes..

Carla Esparza has her eyes on the prize

Everyone said she needed to go out there and make a real statement in order to claim another shot at the title, and as it turns out, Carla Esparza was listening.

Now, during an interview with ESPN’s Ariel Helwani, the former champion has revealed when she’d like to get back into the octagon.

“I think, in a perfect world, I think sometime within the September to December range would be great.” Carla Esparza said.

That would potentially give Carla Esparza time to relax and take some time off before diving back into another training camp, likely in order to rematch Rose Namajunas for the UFC strawweight title.

That hasn’t been explicitly revealed as the next fight for Esparza but after winning five in a row and looking so dominant on Saturday night, it feels odd to think anyone could be put ahead of her in the title queue.

A rematch against Zhang Weili would appear to be the dark horse in this conversation but mixed martial arts fans, especially the hardcores, are really taking notice of Carla Esparza after what she’s been able to accomplish.

As a former champion and a veteran in this sport she’s been able to showcase incredible resolve, and that’s what you need to do in order to move forward.

Some will wonder why Esparza isn’t willing to fight at some stage during the summer, but when you think about it, that wouldn’t do a whole lot to benefit her in terms of preparation.

If she’s heading into another title showdown against someone like 'Thug Rose', she needs to make sure she’s functioning at her highest possible level. If she’s not, it could be a long night at the office.