"If you want confrontation, you're gonna get it" - Julianna Pena didn't "realize" Amanda Nunes was talking trash until she watched the first episode of The Ultimate Fighter
Julianna Pena pulled off one of the biggest upsets in UFC history at UFC 269 by submitting double champion Amanda Nunes with a rear-naked choke. Pena, the current women's bantamweight champion, will defend her belt for the first time at UFC 277 in a rematch with Nunes.
The two women appeared as opposing coaches on The Ultimate Fighter, setting the stage for their title bout. In her UFC 277 media day appearance, Pena stated that she realized Nunes was talking trash only after watching the first episode of their season:
"I didn't realize that she was talking trash until episode one aired and they had to subtitle it and it was such low volume that nobody could hear it. Like, if she wanted to say something to me, if she had something to say, I was right there, but I didn't hear anything that she had to say. So it was like, I guess she was trying to poke at me, but it didn't work."
She continued by stating that 'The Lioness' didn't want to say things in front of her so as to avoid a confrontation:
"She didn't do a very good job, you know what I mean? Because, there's some people that don't like confrontation. I'm not one of those people, okay? If you want confrontation, you're going to get it out of me, you know what I mean? But it was, like, if there was confrontation coming on her end, I had no idea because she was saying it under her breath so I was like don't be scared, I'm right here if you have something to say, just say it.
Pena seemingly implied that Nunes was scared of facing her at UFC 277. By the looks of things, 'The Venezuelan Vixen's' confidence seems to be going through the roof.
"We're going to see whose ovaries are bigger."
Julianna Peña is ready for war with Amanda Nunes.
#UFC277 | Full interview: bit.ly/3cMXdta https://t.co/VM4pXzfcgl
Can Julianna Pena pull off another upset in her rematch with Amanda Nunes?
Despite being the women's bantamweight champion, Julianna Pena enters the fight as an underdog. This isn't that shocking considering her opponent, Amanda Nunes, is widely viewed as the greatest-ever women's MMA fighter.
As pointed out by The MMA Hour producer Conner Burks, history is on Pena's side.
Newly crowned UFC Champions are 11-2 in *immediate* rematches with the fighter they took the belt from
Julianna Peña is currently +235 👀
Pena has a chance to make history by becoming the first fighter to defeat Nunes twice. UFC president Dana White believes the fight will be determined based on the version of Nunes that shows up. If Nunes and her team are to be believed, we will be seeing the legendary fighter more motivated than she has been in a long time.
Watch Julianna Pena's comments below: