Two division UFC champion Amanda Nunes has responded to flyweight queen Valentina Shevchenko after she accused her of copying her style to beat Julianna Pena at UFC 277.
Nunes avenged the lone blemish in her recent run by scoring a dominant victory in her rematch with Pena to reclaim her bantamweight title at UFC 277. ‘The Lioness’ started off really well, outstriking her opponent on the feet, before scoring a dominant second round, in which she earned three knockdowns. ‘The Venezuelan Vixen’ showcased her toughness once more, as she refused to give up despite her opponent’s constant attacks.
Pena continued to charge in wildly, forcing the Brazilian to change her strategy from the third round onwards as she switched to grappling to control her arch-rival on the mat and pummel her with vicious elbows that did a lot of damage. The GWOAT fought a lot smarter compared to their first fight at UFC 269, where she was finished in the second round.
Shevchenko believes her former two-time opponent took a page out of her book to reclaim her title.
Amanda Nunes Responds To Valentina Shevchenko
During the UFC post-fight press conference (as transcribed by MMA Fighting), Nunes clapped back at Shevchenko for trying to ‘stand out’ with her tweet because she failed to impress in her most recent fight against Taila Santos at UFC 276.
“That’s funny,” Nunes said. “She has to put out there something to stand out, because right now, as a champion, Valentina, she lost her last fight. I really think if Taila doesn’t get that headbutt, that fight could have been way different.”
Nunes has two wins over Shevchenko, but their second fight, which took place at UFC 215 for the bantamweight title, ended in a controversial split decision win for the Bahia native.
When asked about a third fight against Shevchenko, Nunes said that she’d happily accept it.
“Good. She’s a champion too,” Nunes said. “That would be awesome.”
Speaking about trilogies, Pena believes that she deserves to fight Nunes for a third time and is looking forward to it.
Valentina Shevchenko or Julianna Pena, who do you think Amanda Nunes should fight next?
