Amanda Nunes doesn’t believe Raquel Pennington can do anything to surprise her.
Nunes is the reigning Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) women’s bantamweight title holder. She’ll be defending her gold against Pennington in the main event of UFC 224. The action will take place inside the Jeunesse Arena in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil this Saturday night (May 12).
“The Lioness” is making her third title defense. She captured the gold by defeating Miesha Tate via submission at the historic UFC 200 event. She then finished Ronda Rousey in 48 seconds and followed that up with a split decision win over Valentina Shevchenko.
Speaking to MMAJunkie.com, Nunes said she’s already aware of what Pennington has planned:
“All the game plans she has in her mind, I know. Because I’ve been there before. I was a challenger. I was the underdog. I fought with somebody I had to pressure to get the fight done. I know how to read my opponent. I know how to adjust my game inside the cage, and I know how to break somebody mentally.”
This will be Pennington’s first UFC title bout. She earned this opportunity with a three-fight winning streak. In her last outing, Pennington earned the biggest win of her professional mixed martial arts career by defeating Miesha Tate.
UFC 224 features a middleweight co-main event. Jacare Souza and Kelvin Gastelum both saw just one loss derailed their title aspirations momentarily. They’ll do battle to see who can keep the dream alive.
Plus, Vitor Belfort is set to compete for the final time. His last opponent will be Lyoto Machida, who many consider to be a fellow future Hall of Famer. That bout will get the main card started. MMANews.com will provide live coverage of UFC 224 from the prelims to the main card.
How do you see Amanda Nunes vs. Raquel Pennington ending?
