How long will Julianna Peña hold the belt?
We had a lot of speculation as we were watching this but I don't think that anyone thought that Pena stood even a micron of a chance in this showdown. The Vegas odds had Amanda Nunes at a +1000 favorite, which is really rare for major UFC events. The reason behind this is because Nunes has just decimated everyone that she has faced in the past few years.
I honestly think that Julianna was put into this situation simply because there was no one else for Nunes to fight in the rather empty women's bantamweight division. At the bar I was watching it at we took side bets about how long it was going to take Nunes to finish Pena. I bet 2 minutes into the second round and I was kind of right, but I just bet on the wrong horse.
Let's just say that nobody in the bar won the bets because there wasn't a single person in attendance that thought that Peña, who has lost 2 of her last 4 fights, stood a chance in hell of winning this thing.
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It's tough to say exactly what went wrong in Nunes' corner but in the first round we were all kind of surprised that Peña was still standing. Then once the second round started, we noticed something about Amanda's eyes.... she didn't seem to be all there and was noticeably slower.
I've done a bit of cage fighting many years ago and there was one fight where I lost particularly badly and don't even remember the second round and while I can't say for sure because it was so long ago, Nunes appeared to have that "the lights are halfway off upstairs already" look in her eyes in round two.
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After the fight, there was a lot of talk about how Amanda Nunes may have "Rousey'd" herself in this fight by not being prepared for what everyone, including perhaps Nunes, didn't think that Peña even belonged in the octagon with the champ.
The thing about the finish that made me feel a bit suspicious about the entire thing was the "choke" wasn't even locked in very well and the tap out on the part of Nunes kind of seemed like she just gave up rather than being unable to continue.
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When Nunes tapped, a lot of us in the bar couldn't believe what we were seeing. Peña didn't even have her arm fully across the throat of Nunes and of course, there was some speculation that this was a fix. I'd like to think that most fighters would never consider doing something like this but there has been a lot of talk about how Nunes fights weren't really big draws anymore because it was just a foregone conclusion that she was going to completely dismantle her opponent.
I'm not trying to take away from Peña's victory at all because she was outboxing Nunes in round 1 as well. Also, as someone that has been on the giving and receiving end of punches with light gloves, I know that it only takes one special and lucky placement to completely change the momentum of a fight even against a far more skilled opponent.
Now back to my original question: How long do you think Julianna Peña will remain the champion? My guess is right up until the next time she fights. If they decide to have an event in Texas or even better, New Mexico I would imagine that Dana White would love to pit her up against Holly Holm, who has won 3 of her last 4.
This would be a great matchup in my mind rather than simply having an immediate rematch with Nunes and would also give Nunes a chance to move to flyweight to face Shevchenko, which is something that Dana White has probably been pushing to happen for quite some time.
What do you think?
Absolutely shocking. That said, I think Nunes beats her in a rematch. I would also love to see Kayla Harrison in the UFC if Nunes considers retiring
Yeah i don't think that Pena is really championship material. I mean she looked great this weekend but i've seen her in the past and even though it sounds like I am raining on her parade I think that Nunes beat herself or Pena just got really lucky. Overall the card was fantastic though, best I've seen in a while.
I didn't see this one, but I love to see an underdog prevail, fair play to Peña!!
I'd say if the rematch happens, which you'd imagine it will knowing Dana White, then Nunes will be refocuses and do the job on the second time of asking - that's normally how it goes..
I would like to see her do well and be able to retain the title for a long time.
I think it was a fluke that she beat Nunes or that she didn't prepare well, in a rematch she would lose to the Brazilian.
Won't last long and rematch should be a clinical return to form. losses are a good kick in the pants for some people and this will be a wake up.
Pena's consecutive jabs and her 1-2 connected repeatedly left Amanda almost knocked out before the submission. Like you I thought it was a little weird that quick submission, but looking at the fight again with more detail there is nothing to speculate or think, Amanda was swept and did not withstand the gale of the Venezuelan vixen.
That shows that she has little resistance to withstand punishment. Against Germaine de Randamie was also like that, but in that opportunity Amanda took the fight to the floor quickly.
Oh she did well that is for sure and I like your insight to the 1-2 connections. Upon reflection we haven't really seen Nunes take a lot of punishment in the past so perhaps this truly is her Achilles heel. I never would have guessed that she has a weak chin but then again, this could have just been a bad day. The thing is that Nunes' stock has probably actually gone UP because of this and her payout for future events will likely rise... obviously this is pure speculation on my part.
Well, that's a reality beyond your speculation, that woman is worth a lot of money haha.
Particularly I think that this defeat has been the best thing that could have happened to the division, now with this an obvious rematch is open, and for sure it's a fight that everyone wants to see.
Imagine if Pena wins again 😱
I already here a lot of people talking about it being fixed; and I don't know...Why not, I think most fights could be seen from the "fixed" perspective, and I wouldn't be surprised if it's the case.
These guys take so much damage throughout the years, imagine getting a 200k bonus because you gave up the belt, it benefits everyone, especially those bettors.
One dude spent 25O USD and made 13k USD predicting Pena's victory. Imagine how much uncle Dana can make by having some goons betting for him.
What I found weird, was Pena interview the next day with Ariel Helwani, she looks like she is on the run from the police, wearing a winter hat and glasses, I know it's just a detail, but you just fucking won the belt, that's all you wanted your entire life.
She is the type to put a nice dress and some make up on, unless...She is ashamed...
Also her reaction after winning, was really off, she stood up, calmly, didn't smile, like she was not fully there.
Again, it could be just a case of Nunes not being motivated anymore, we've see people give up on neck cranks before...
oooh, I was unaware of all of this interview stuff. I'm gonna go find that now. We have been talking about this in circles of friends and while of course we can't possibly know, but the "win bonus" was just $100,000. If she was able to secure some shady people around the world to bet against her, she could easily have made 20x that amount by having a convincing loss. I'd take an ass whoopin for a million bucks, especially if it meant that when I make my comeback that I am likely to receive the same salary I did when I had the belt.
Nunes also was slated to receive zero of the PPV payout, which I think further solidifies my stance on her not being a draw.... that will almost certainly change now, especially if she moves up a division.