Julianna Pena still frustrated by Amanda Nunes retiring: “We do have unfinished business”
Nearly a month on from UFC 289, Julianna Pena is still upset about Amanda Nunes’ retirement.
‘The Venezuelan Vixen’ has been out of the cage since her rematch with ‘The Lioness’ last July. The bout took place just six months after Julianna Pena shook up the world, submitting the Brazilian. However, in the rematch, she was dominated by Amanda Nunes, who reclaimed the gold by unanimous decision.
The two were set for a trilogy clash at UFC 289 last month. Sadly, weeks out from the contest, Julianna Pena was forced to withdraw due to injuries. As a result, Irene Aldana stepped in on short notice and suffered a lopsided decision defeat in the pay-per-view headliner. Following the victory, Amanda Nunes announced her retirement.
Since then, Julianna Pena has unleashed a series of rants directed at the former dual-weight champion. Following the event, the former titleholder admitted she was debating storming the cage during the retirement speech. Later, many, including Maycee Barber, came to Amanda Nunes’s defense, bashing Julianna Pena.
In a recent interview with ESPN, the former champion admitted she still wasn’t completely over it. In the interview, Julianna Pena admitted that the retirement really hurt due to the fact that she lost out on a trilogy bout with Amanda Nunes. Sitting at 1-1, the former champion is frustrated about what could’ve been.
“The biggest thing for me is we are 1-1,” Julianna Pena stated in the interview when asked about Amanda Nunes. “I think I’m the only person on the face of the planet that is allowed to say or can call Amanda Nunes a coward. Ah, because we do have unfinished business and I definitely think she found the easy way out with retiring, I do.”
She continued, “Injuries happen in the sport. Of course, it’s my fault that I wasn’t able to compete at that time but she also pulled out of our fight when we were supposed to fight the first time. She’s pulled out of many fights in the past. It doesn’t mean you go retire because of it.”
What do you make of these comments? Who do you want to see Julianna Pena fight next?
Topics:
Amanda Nunes Julianna Pena UFC
