Raquel Pennington calls for Julianna Peña rematch after UFC 307 title loss: "I need Julianna to get her sh*t together"
Julianna Peña's women's bantamweight title win over Raquel Pennington ended in controversy. Now, the former champion is campaigning for an immediate title rematch. During a recent sitdown on MMA Today via Fight Nation on the SiriusXM platform, she spoke to UFC light heavyweight Anthony Smith.
During her conversation with the one-time 205-pound title challenger, Pennington expressed her frustration with the judges' scorecards at UFC 307. She believes wholeheartedly that she should have won the fight and is now challenging Peña to face her in an immediate rematch.
"We're definitely going to push for the rematch. I was talking to Lloyd yesterday because I don't find it fair, at all. And it's not something that I want to let go of, and with me being humble and me being quiet, the situation, I feel like if I just get overlooked or they try to do something different, it's going to bring out a different side of me."
Both Pennington and Smith mentioned the fact that Peña was awarded an immediate title fight despite losing to Amanda Nunes in her prior bout. She feels that given the controversial and competitive nature of her own bout with Peña, she ought to be given a rematch.
Moreover, she also responded to Kayla Harrison's recent confession regarding her struggles with the weight cut to 135 pounds.
"She [Kayla Harrison] did sit there and say for herself that the weight cut is taking a toll on her and she needs some time off. Well, at the end of the day, I don't need time off. I just need my hands to heal and I need Julianna to get her sh*t together."
Check out Raquel Pennington calling for a rematch with Julianna Peña:
Julianna Peña is eyeing an Amanda Nunes trilogy instead
As much as Julianna Peña has two clear-cut fights the UFC can schedule, a rematch with Raquel Pennington or a title defense against Kayla Harrison, she is only interested in one fight: a trilogy fight with Amanda Nunes. The two women first clashed back at UFC 269.
Peña won in a historic upset, submitting Nunes to capture bantamweight gold. However, Peña was dealt a lopsided beating in their rematch, losing the belt. Thereafter, Nunes retired, but Peña has continued campaigning for a bout and is doing so again.