John McCarthy explains what was "the difference maker" in the Amanda Nunes vs. Julianna Pena fight at UFC 269
Julianna Pena defeated Amanda Nunes to become the new women's bantamweight champion in the co-main event at UFC 269. Pena came in as a huge underdog and secured what is being considered one of the greatest upsets in UFC history.
Former UFC referee John McCarthy has now weighed in on Pena's title win against Nunes. According to McCarthy, Pena's jab was the defining factor in her upset victory.
McCarthy believes Nunes's gameplan was derailed after repeatedly getting hit by the shot. John McCarthy told Josh Thomson on a recent episode of the Weighing In podcast:
"Little bit of head movement, keeping your head off center line and throwing the jab out. Look here, the jab's the simplest damn punch there is in fighting arts. You know, simplest, but some people are good at it, some people are not. Not that Julianna (Pena) is great at it but her simple jab won that fight. That was the difference maker. That's what started everything. Every time Amanda (Nunes) loaded up and tried to throw something big, she got hit by the jab, it threw her off, her shot missed and it was just a progression of downhill in that second round."
Watch the full episode of the Weighing In podcast below:
Julianna Pena on her victory over Amanda Nunes
Julianna Pena shocked the world with a second-round submission victory over arguably the greatest female fighter of all time Amanda Nunes. What surprised many fans was how quickly 'The Lioness' tapped out after Pena sunk in a rear-naked choke.
However, Julianna Pena insists that Nunes had to tap out, otherwise she would have broken the Brazilian's neck. 'The Venezuelan Vixen' told Ariel Helwani on The MMA Hour:
"She had no choice but to tap. People want to say she quit. She didn’t quit, she was getting choked. She had no choice but to tap. I would have broke her neck. She tapped because she had no choice. My coach and I have been working this choke for a while and it was the same pretty much as I got with Sara McMann."
Watch Julianna Pena's full interview on The MMA Hour below: