With the women’s bantamweight title about to be vacant, Raquel Pennington wants her shot at gold.
Amanda Nunes announced her retirement after a lopsided title defense against Irene Aldana in this past Saturday’s UFC 289 headliner at Rogers Arena in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
Nunes’ announcement left former champion Julianna Pena (11-5 MMA, 7-3 UFC), who was in attendance for the fight, disappointed. Peña was Nunes’ original opponent before a rib injury forced her to withdraw from their rubber match.
But now that Nunes will be relinquishing her belt, Pennington (15-8 MMA, 12-5 UFC) suggests she fights Peña for it.
“Me vs Julianna got the world title!!!! Dana always thought from TUF we would face each other at the finale. Wasn’t the journey then but here we are now!!! @danawhite @Mickmaynard2 @ufc.”
Me vs Julianna got the world title!!!! Dana always thought from TUF we would face each other at the finale. Wasn’t the journey then but here we are now!!! @danawhite @Mickmaynard2 @ufc
— Raquel Pennington (@RockyPMMA) June 11, 2023
“Congratulations @Amanda_Leoa on a successful career!”
Congratulations @Amanda_Leoa on a successful career!
— Raquel Pennington (@RockyPMMA) June 11, 2023
Pennington and Peña both competed on Season 18 of “The Ultimate Fighter” with coach Miesha Tate. Pennington was eliminated in the semifinals; Peña won the season.
Since then, both have found success in the UFC. Pennington fell short in her pursuit of UFC gold when she was stopped by Round 5 TKO against Nunes in 2018, but currently is on a five-fight winning streak.
Peña scored a shocking upset of Nunes when she submitted her at UFC 269. The pair ran things back at UFC 277 in July 2022, and Nunes avenged her loss to reclaim the bantamweight title in dominant fashion. However with Nunes retiring, Peña won’t get the trilogy she’s been clamoring for.
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 289.
