Kayla Harrison gets honest about potential Amanda Nunes clash after Julianna Peña title fight, recalls training session with former teammate
Kayla Harrison is currently scheduled to challenge Julianna Peña for the women's bantamweight title at UFC 316. However, a matchup with UFC Hall of Famer Amanda Nunes is what the former PFL star is truly aiming for.
Speaking to Mike Bohn on episode 28 of The Bohnfire, Harrison detailed her goals as a fighter and how her desire to face Nunes, the consensus greatest women's fighter of all time, is more important to her than facing Peña:
"I have to go whoop on Julianna, but that was always the fight I wanted. I never meant it in a disrespectful manner. I never meant it like, 'I'm better than you.' I just think that she is the greatest of all time. To me, that's a very clear distinction of where she has put herself, and I didn't come to the sport to be the second greatest. May we share the cage with respect and dignity, and may the best woman win."
This isn't the first time Harrison has expressed an interest in facing Nunes. However, she soon addressed a question about their past training sessions, as Nunes was once part of American Top Team, like she currently is:
"We didn't really train live a whole lot. It was a lot of drilling and situational stuff from what I recall. So I wasn't going 100%. She got 40% of me too, but I was at the gym every day. When she wanted to train, I made myself available."
Check out Kayla Harrison's thoughts on facing Amanda Nunes (21:25 and 22:28):
For now, though, Harrison will have her hands full with Peña, who is as scrappy and tough as they come. They clash in the UFC 316 co-main event, and both women are eager to face Nunes.
Amanda Nunes spoke similarly about Kayla Harrison
After appearing cage-side at UFC 314, Amanda Nunes spoke to the UFC Brasil broadcast team. During her interview, she highlighted Kayla Harrison as the fighter she is most eager to face:
"Of course, I'm open to it. Kayla or Julianna, I want my title back and I will fight for it. I'm driven by challenges, Evelyn. I like challenges in my life, understand? I like to fight for something that... Kayla's damn strong. I want her. She's who I want."
Check out Amanda Nunes singling out Kayla Harrison (3:48):
Nunes also spoke about their past training sessions, though hesitant to reveal who got the better of whom.