UFC women’s bantamweight champion Amanda Nunes hasn’t competed since September 2017 when she scored a split-decision victory over Valentina Shevchenko at UFC 215 and when she returns to action in the main event of May 12’s UFC 224 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, she’ll meet a familiar face – well, sort of.
Nunes will be taking on Raquel Pennington, the fiancé of strawweight contender Tecia Torres, who Nunes has trained with. That, however, will not play a factor in the fight according to “The Lioness”:
“I don’t think it matters that much,” Nunes told MMAjunkie earlier this week in Rio. “When the door closes, only me and ‘Rocky’ know what’s going down. We think we know each other, but we don’t know because we never fought before, we never trained together before. It’s going to be a surprise for both of us.
“I know we’re going to be ready, but things are going to happen. Somebody has to win, and I know everything she brings, I’m going to be ready. I did train with Tecia (at American Top Team), and we were close in the gym. But stepping in that cage, no one knows what’s going down.”
There were rumors indicating that Nunes could next take on featherweight champion Cris Cyborg in a super fight, but Pennington ultimately received the call and she’s a deserving challenger nonetheless, as she’s won four consecutive fights.
Heading into this bout, Nunes is the betting favorite, however, which is a rarity for her, although she’s only focused on one thing and that’s making sure she walks out of the arena with her belt wrapped around her waist:
“This is the dangerous thing – I have to be careful,” Nunes said. “MMA is MMA – things can happen. When people underestimate somebody, they get stronger. I’ve been there before. I know how she feels right now, and I’m not going to let that get me down. That’s why it’s going to be good for me this camp, because I know all about what people say. I’m going to worry about me, do my thing, get 100 percent and keep my belt.”
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