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Germaine de Randamie doesn’t believe Amanda Nunes will want to strike with her at UFC 245.
If there’s anything Germaine de Randamie has learned from her first-round TKO loss to Amanda Nunes at UFC Fight for the Troops 3, it’s that she has the advantage over ‘The Lioness’ on the feet.
Although that bout took place over six years ago and both fighters — especially Nunes — have improved a ton since then, de Randamie believes her opponent will be shooting for the takedown from the opening bell on Saturday night.
“She made me wake up. I can say I’m a mixed martial artist now, not just a kickboxer. The difference will be I’m a mixed martial artist and not a kickboxer,” de Randamie said at the UFC 245 Athlete Panel Q&A on Wednesday (h/t MMA Fighting’s Damon Martin).
“I think the most thing I learned about it and the thing that will happen Saturday is she’s not going to stand with me,” she added. “She’s going to shoot on me.”
Nunes, however, is confident in her ability to KO de Randamie on the feet. The UFC women’s bantamweight and featherweight champion has developed a reputation as one of the most technical and powerful strikers in the sport, earning KO wins over the likes of Ronda Rousey, Cris Cyborg and Holly Holm.
With that said, Nunes won’t neglect the takedown if the opportunity presents itself.
“I have so many things to do in this fight,” Nunes said in response. “I just have to take my time. I think what I’m going to wait for is she’s going to make a mistake. I know she’s going to make mistakes. Like the first time. I’m going to capitalize. The takedown for sure is something that I look for. But I don’t know when it’s going to happen.
“I know I’ll be able to strike with her. I know I believe I can knock her out. I know she’s very good what she has with her striking but I already see a lot of holes. We know each other very well. This is my second camp for her and I know I’m going to finish her.”
UFC 245, which will see Nunes defend her bantamweight title against de Randamie in the co-main event, takes place this Saturday, Dec. 14 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.