"Julianna wasn't expecting it" - UFC women's flyweight contender on how Amanda Nunes' coach came up with brilliant strategy that helped 'The Lioness' beat Julianna Pena in their rematch (Exclusive)
UFC women's flyweight Mariya Agapova has shared details of how Amanda Nunes worked with her coach and devised a game plan that saw 'The Lioness' reclaim her bantamweight title when she rematched Julianna Pena earlier this year.
Agapova made her UFC debut back in 2020 after appearing on Dana White's Contender Series a year prior. The 25-year-old is 2-2 since making the switch to the UFC and earned a Peformance of the Night bonus when she defeated Sabina Mazo last year.
The Kazakhstan-born fighter recently sat down with Sportskeeda MMA's Daniel Vreeland to discuss the future of the women's bantamweight division. Agapova provided some insight into Nunes' game plan in the rematch against Pena, which included working with her coach.
Speaking exclusively to Sportskeeda MMA, the 25-year-old said:
"Nunes lost one and she didn't like it. When you're the favorite and people bet on you, when she lost, they all start hating you and writing evil messages. I'm sure Amanda didn't like that. She wanted to run it back and show everyone she was still champ."
Agapova added:
"She worked with my coach, Roger Krahl, for the second camp. He did a very good strategy. Roger, I think he's a genius and he had a very good strategy... The strategy he made for Amanda, she was changing stance and Julianna wasn't expecting it."
Check out the full interview on Sportskeeda MMA's YouTube channel here:
Ali Abdelaziz believes PFL star Kayla Harrison can defeat Amanda Nunes, Cris Cyborg, and Julianna Pena
Dominance MMA Management CEO Ali Abdelaziz believes his client, Kayla Harrison, is destined to face and defeat some of the biggest names in women's MMA history.
Many fans consider the likes of Amanda Nunes, Cris Cyborg and Julianna Pena to be three of the toughest opponents in women's MMA today. However, Abdelaziz has stated that they are running from a fight against the two-time Olympic champion Harrison.
Speaking to ESPN MMA's Brett Okamoto, Abdelaziz made a bold claim regarding the future of Harrison and her skills in the cage:
"She's an absolute savage. She's a two-time Olympic champion, she's a world champion, she's a two-time PFL champion... Everybody's running from her. Amanda's running, Cyborg's running. We [saw] Amanda [versus] Julianna Pena... She [Pena] exposed Amanda Nunes and I respect Amanda Nunes."
Abdelaziz added:
"Kayla Harrison will eat every one of them - breakfast, lunch, and dinner. It's a meal. She'll be going on a flight and eating three meals. That's what she'll do to them."
Catch the interview with Brett Okamoto here: