Juliana Peña and Amanda Nunes had their first TUF faceoff earlier today.
The rivalry between newly crowned bantamweight champion Juliana Peña and former champion Amanda Nunes is beginning to heat up. Fresh off her victory over Nunes, Peña was gunning for another chance at the GOAT. Peña wants to prove that she is the best at 135 pounds beyond a reasonable doubt, and if beating Nunes again will solidify that, then she is ready.
To sweeten the deal of the rematch, the UFC has named these two as coaches of the upcoming season of The Ultimate Fighter (TUF).
Peña and Nunes were announced as coaches for the 30th season of TUF just recently. They have not begun filming yet, but the two were involved in a media day to promote the show. During the media day in Las Vegas, Nunes had the chance to come face to face with the only woman to have beaten her in seven years.
During the face-off, Peña was wearing a black TUF jersey, showing that her chosen team will be the black team. Nunes was wearing red. The man in the middle of the faceoff, standing in for Dana White, was TUF alum Forrest Griffin. No words were spoken between the two, but Nunes was holding her featherweight belt while Peña donned her new bantamweight strap.
Peña’s UFC journey began when she was a member of the season 18 Ultimate Fighter cast. Peña won her season and now gets the chance to help others go down the path she has before.
This 30th season will feature men’s heavyweights and women’s flyweights battling it out for a UFC contract while locked away from the outside world. Since the inception of The Ultimate Fighter, many fighters featured on the show went on to have great UFC careers, with a few becoming champions.
The new season featuring Peña and Nunes begins Tuesday, May 3 on ESPN+.
Do you think Julianna Peña will be able to make in 2-0 against Amanda Nunes after this season of TUF?
