Amanda Nunes News

Julianna Pena, Amanda Nunes
Julianna Pena

Julianna Pena claims she made Amanda Nunes "relevant again" by beating her: "She’s probably really thankful for me"

Cole Shelton - June 8, 2023

Julianna Pena says she made Amanda Nunes relevant again. At UFC 269, Nunes was looking to defend her bantamweight title for the sixth time and extend her win streak to 13. During the win streak, she also won the featherweight title and not many of those fights were all that competitive. With that, Pena believes fans started to not care about Nunes’ fights until she pulled off a submission win to become the new champ.

Julianna Pena, Amanda Nunes, UFC 277
Julianna Pena

UFC champion Amanda Nunes explains why she decided not to retire: "I couldn’t leave my belt with Julianna"

Cole Shelton - June 8, 2023

Amanda Nunes has explained why she opted against retirement after losing to Julianna Pena back at UFC 269. Nunes entered the fight as a sizeable betting favorite and had a solid first round. However, in the second round, Pena began to land big shots and it appeared the Brazilian was starting to fade. ‘The Lioness’ was later submitted that very same round.

Amanda-Nunes-Valentina-Shevchenko
UFC

Amanda Nunes doesn’t see a trilogy fight with Valentina Shevchenko ever coming to fruition: “That don’t sell nothing”

Harry Kettle - June 8, 2023

UFC sensation Amanda Nunes doesn’t picture a trilogy fight against Valentina Shevchenko happening anytime soon. This weekend, Amanda Nunes will attempt to successfully defend her UFC bantamweight championship when she takes on Irene Aldana. She was initially scheduled to battle Julianna Pena in a trilogy bout, only for Aldana to get the call after Pena was pulled.

Amanda Nunes, Irene Aldana
Exclusive MMA Interviews

UFC 289 | Pro fighters make their picks for Amanda Nunes vs. Irene Aldana title fight

Cole Shelton - June 7, 2023

In the main event of UFC 289, Amanda Nunes looks to defend her bantamweight title as she takes on Irene Aldana who stepped up after Julianna Pena was forced out of the scrap due to an injury. Heading into the fight, Nunes is a -350 favorite while the Mexican is a +255 underdog on FanDuel. Ahead of the fight at UFC 289, BJPENN.com reached out to several pro fighters to make their predictions for the scrap. To no surprise, most are picking Nunes to remain the champ, although some think Aldana can make it difficult with her striking.

Amanda-Nunes-Dana-White
Irene Aldana

Amanda Nunes labels Irene Aldana a more dangerous opponent than Julianna Pena

Josh Evanoff - May 29, 2023

UFC women’s bantamweight champion Amanda Nunes has discussed her return against Irene Aldana. ‘The Lioness’ has been out of the octagon for almost a year, last competing at UFC 277 in July. That bout was the Brazilian’s long-awaited rematch against Julianna Pena. In December 2021, ‘The Venezuelan Vixen’ famously upset Nunes by second-round submission, ending her title reign.

Amanda Nunes
Irene Aldana

Amanda Nunes excited to defend her title against “real opponent” Irene Aldana at UFC 289: “After what I did with Julianna in our last fight”

Harry Kettle - May 10, 2023

Amanda Nunes has explained why she’s happier to be defending her UFC bantamweight title against Irene Aldana as opposed to Julianna Pena. At UFC 289 next month, the original plan was for Amanda Nunes to battle Julianna Pena in a trilogy bout. However, after Pena was forced to withdraw, Nunes received a new opponent in the form of Irene Aldana.

Dana White
Dana White

Dana White reveals backup fighter for Amanda Nunes vs Irene Aldana at UFC 289

Cole Shelton - May 4, 2023

Dana White has revealed there will be a backup fighter for the UFC 289 main event between Amanda Nunes and Irene Aldana. On Tuesday, White revealed that Pena was out of the UFC 289 main event against Nunes and Aldana has stepped in on short notice. Aldana, meanwhile, was supposed to headline the May 20 event against Raquel Pennington, so with that fight off, White revealed Pennington will be the backup fighter for June’s title bout.

UFC 277, Amanda Nunes, Julianna Pena
Dana White

Julianna Pena out of UFC 289 with a broken rib, Amanda Nunes now defends title against Irene Aldana

Cole Shelton - May 2, 2023

The trilogy between Julianna Pena and Amanda Nunes will no longer be happening at UFC 289. UFC president, Dana White took to Instagram to announce that Pena has suffered a broken rib and is out of their scheduled main event fight. However, Irene Aldana has agreed to step up on short notice and will now headline the pay-per-view event for the bantamweight title against Nunes on June 10 in Vancouver, Canada.

Julianna Pena, Amanda Nunes, TUF
Julianna Pena

Julianna Pena explains why her “back hurts” ahead of trilogy fight with Amanda Nunes at UFC 289: “From carrying this fight and from making her relevant again”

Susan Cox - April 19, 2023

Julianna Pena is explaining why her ‘back hurts’ ahead of her trilogy fight with Amanda Nunes at UFC 289. It was announced on April 9th that UFC 289 will feature Nunes vs. Pena 3 in the upcoming mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship which takes place on Saturday, June 10, 2023, at the Rogers Arena in Vancouver, B.C. The bantamweight title bout will see Nunes (22-5 MMA) taking on Peña (11-5 MMA) in the Octagon.

Julianna Pena

Julianna Pena believes Amanda Nunes was "forced" into UFC 289 trilogy match: "She had no choice but to fight me"

Josh Evanoff - April 12, 2023

Former UFC women’s bantamweight champion Julianna Pena is happy to finally have her return booked. ‘The Venezuelan Vixen’ has been out of action since her UFC 277 main event with Amanda Nunes. The bout happened just a few short months after Pena shocked the world against ‘The Lioness’. At UFC 269 in December 2021, the Brazilian shockingly suffered a second-round submission loss to lose her bantamweight title.

Julianna Pena Amanda Nunes
Julianna Pena

Amanda Nunes wasn't expecting trilogy fight with Julianna Pena but is prepared for domination: "Ready for everything"

Josh Evanoff - April 11, 2023

UFC women’s bantamweight and featherweight champion Amanda Nunes is ready for her return. ‘The Lioness’ has been out of the cage since her rematch with Julianna Pena last July at UFC 277. In their first outing in December 2021, ‘The Venezuelan Vixen’ shocked the world. In the second round, Pena took down the champion and scored a submission victory to win the gold.

Julianna Pena, Amanda Nunes, UFC 277
Julianna Pena

Amanda Nunes vs. Julianna Pena 3 to headline UFC 289 in June

Josh Evanoff - April 7, 2023

UFC 289 in June officially now has a main event. The card is slated for the Rogers Arena in Vancouver, Canada, and is already filling out. Scheduled fights for the event include Stephen Thompson vs. Michel Pereira, as well as Rob Font’s clash with Nate Landwehr. Now, the card has a headliner.

Kayla Harrison, PFL
Cris 'Cyborg' Justino

Kayla Harrison explains respect behind callouts of Amanda Nunes and Cris Cyborg: "You're the best"

Josh Evanoff - November 25, 2022

PFL women’s lightweight contender Kayla Harrison’s chase for greatness is driving her callouts of other champions. The Judoka is set to headline PFL 10 later tonight on pay-per-view. Standing opposite Harrison will be Larissa Pacheco. The Brazilian is riding a five-fight finishing streak but has already lost twice to the former Olympian by decision.

Julianna Pena, Amanda Nunes, UFC 277
Julianna Pena

Julianna Pena calls for trilogy match with Amanda Nunes next: "It's time for her to return the favor"

Josh Evanoff - November 4, 2022

Former UFC women’s bantamweight champion Julianna Pena still has her eyes on Amanda Nunes. ‘The Venezuelan Vixen’ has been out of action since her rematch with ‘The Lioness’ in July. Their first fight six months prior saw one of the biggest upsets in MMA history, as Pena submitted Nunes in round two. In the process, she ended the Brazilian’s near six-year run with gold.

Cris Cyborg
Cris 'Cyborg' Justino

Cris Cyborg explains why she takes issue with fans calling Amanda Nunes the GOAT of women’s MMA

Susan Cox - November 1, 2022

Cris Cyborg is explaining why she takes issue with fans calling Amanda Nunes the GOAT of women’s MMA. Amanda Nunes (22-5 MMA), currently holds both the UFC featherweight and bantamweight titles. Nunes most recently avenged her loss to Julianna Peña (11-5 MMA) and reclaimed her bantamweight belt at UFC 277 this past July.

Julianna Pena, Amanda Nunes, UFC 277
Julianna Pena

Julianna Pena says Amanda Nunes "outsmarted" her in rematch but vows to "not miss" in a potential trilogy: "I’m getting my belt back"

Cole Shelton - October 8, 2022

Julianna Pena is confident she will get a trilogy match with Amanda Nunes her next time out. Pena and Nunes first met in the co-main event of UFC 269 with ‘The Venezuelan Vixen’ pulling off a massive upset as she submitted ‘The Lioness’ to become the new bantamweight champ. The two then had an immediate rematch in the main event of UFC 277 with Nunes winning a clear-cut decision to reclaim her title.

Amanda-Nunes-Valentina-Shevchenko
Henry Cejudo

Henry Cejudo explains why he would pick Valentina Shevchenko to win potential trilogy fight with Amanda Nunes

Cole Shelton - August 5, 2022

Henry Cejudo believes Valentina Shevchenko will defeat Amanda Nunes if they have a trilogy match. Nunes and Shevchenko met back at UFC 196 with the Brazilian winning a decision, in just a three-round fight. After Nunes became the champ, they had their rematch at UFC 215 for the belt and once again Nunes won the fight, but this time it was by split decision.

Dana White
Dana White

Dana White believes Amanda Nunes “looked a little gun-shy” in UFC rematch with Julianna Pena: “She never really went in for the kill”

Susan Cox - August 3, 2022

Dana White believes Amanda Nunes ‘looked a little gun-shy’ in the UFC rematch with Julianna Pena. It was Amanda Nunes (22-5 MMA) vs Julianna Pena (12-5 MMA) last Saturday, July 30th in the women’s bantamweight main event at the American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas.