Julianna Pena expects Ronda Rousey to back up the tough talk in the UFC Octagon as she shows interest in fighting Rousey.
Pena has recently shared her interest in fighting Ronda in the octagon and expects her to back up the tough talk in the octagon. Julianna Pena is living the champion’s life post her victory against Amanda Nunes at UFC 269. Pena defeated Amanda via a rear naked choke and won the Women’s Bantamweight title.
Julianna recently in a interview spoke about facing Ronda Rousey in the octagon sometime in future. Julianna and Amanda will be facing each other for the belt in a rematch. Pean has repeatedly shown interest in fighting Ronda even while she and Amanda are shooting for TUF.
Pena’s first title defense would be against Amanda in a rematch. If Julianna defeats Amanda for the second time, it would put her in a very special category of fighters. Pena however has more bigger ambitions as she wants to face Ronda inside the octagon.
“That has always been a fight that interests me,” Peña said. “When Dana White allowed women into the UFC, he just handed Ronda a belt. She didn’t have to compete, she didn’t have to do anything. He just said, ‘Hey, welcome to this promotion, here’s this shiny belt.’
Julianna Peña on Ronda Rousey:
Pena added that she wasn’t fighting one person at that time. I had to fight four people and I felt I was ready to face Ronda when I won TUF. “Ronda told me, ‘You’re going to give me a tougher fight than Miesha Tate could ever dream about but when that day comes, I’m still going to kick your ass,’” Peña said.
“It bothers her that she left on two knockout losses, and that she never came back to avenge those. Let’s face it, she’s a star. She’s killing it in the WWE, and she can make a ton more money doing what she does over there instead of doing the real s—. But if she wants to challenge herself and come back to the real stuff, I’ll be here.” Pena added.
Pena on Amanda Nunes fight
“It never crossed my mind that I couldn’t do this,” Peña said talking about the fight with Amanda. “Yes, I took heavy shots but it’s a fist fight. I’ve been doing this for 13 years and I knew I had to get through that fire early. If I take those shots and continue fighting, I knew I would break Amanda. When you get hit, that’s the moment that shows if you will succeed or not, Pena added.
Julianna has also shown interest in fighting Ronda previously in the MMA hour as well. While talking to Ariel Helwani, she said she would want to fight Ronda Rousey sometime.
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