Amanda Nunes wants featherweight division open ‘as long as I’m champion’

Amanda Nunes is the UFC’s first and only female dual-division champion. She intends to keep it that way if she has any say in the matter.

Immediately following Nunes’ last successful title defense at UFC 259 against Megan Anderson, the challenger in Anderson proclaimed that the 145-pound featherweight class was done in the UFC. Soon after, the UFC denied that possibility, and Nunes has also since expressed that it wasn’t true.

“[UFC President] Dana [White] wants to end this division, but I told him that as long as I’m champion, I want it open,” Nunes told Combate (h/t MMA Fighting). “I think the issue with the featherweight [division] is talent. I think it’s hard to find talented girls in this division. I could be wrong, but we’re seeing that the girls that fought Cris [‘Cyborg’ Justino] needed a little bit more. Not that they are bad athletes, but they needed some work.”

Brazil’s Nunes acquired the featherweight crown in December 2018 by starching one of the sport’s all-time greats, Cris “Cyborg” Justino, in just under a minute at UFC 232. Since then, she’s defended the title twice which came in each of her most recent outings.

The first saw her pick up a wildly dominant unanimous decision win over Felicia Spencer in the main event of UFC 250 in June 2020. Then it was onto the aforementioned Anderson who came up short via first-round triangle armbar in what was the last fight on her UFC contract.

“She’s huge,” Amanda Nunes said of 6-foot contender Anderson. “We look at her and she looks like a giraffe (laughs). But are lionesses afraid of giraffes? They go right for the neck.

“I’ll wait, I’m sure they will find someone [at featherweight next. They did that with Cris, brought in girls from God knows where to fight her. And even bantamweights will want to move up in weight so they get more comfortable. It’s better that way for me. Having an actual division or not, it doesn’t matter to me.”

For Nunes’ next title defense, she’ll be dropping down to her primary home of bantamweight at 135-pounds. At UFC 265 on August 7, “The Lioness” takes on “The Venezuelan Vixen” Julianna Pena.