Sunday, Jul 31, 2022. 12:25 AM
(Update : Sunday, Jul 31, 2022. 12:43 AM)
It was revenge time for Amanda Nunes on Saturday night at UFC 277, and the least we can say is that the Brazilian responded.
Nunes absolutely dominated Julianna Pena for 25 minutes to reclaim the bantamweight title she ceded to her in December 2021.
For Pena (11-5), it was her first title defense since stripping her opponent of the belt at UFC 269 a few months ago.
Prior to his misstep against Pena last winter, Nunes had won twelve straight fights.
Nunes (22-5) proved beyond any doubt that this surprise loss was only a mistake and that at 34 years old, she still has the ammunition to be a double champion, she who also holds the title in featherweight.
Nunes was able to land several straight lines directly on target at 1is round, including one that destabilized the champion to the point of kneeling on the ground. Pena, however, was able to get back to her feet in a hurry.
The Brazilian’s sustained offense continued from the opening seconds of the second round, as Pena found herself knocked down three times after being hit by blistering strikes.
In addition to demonstrating that she could take even the contender’s best attacks, Pena showed remarkable tenacity to extricate herself unscathed from the 2e engagement.
Although Pena tried to bring the fight to the ground during the resumption, it was rather Nunes who took advantage of the situation to deliver several other power strikes at the expense of a champion lying on her back.
After 15 minutes of dominating with her fists, Nunes varied her strategy and pulled off an early throw in the 4e round. The Brazilian however came very close to being caught in the game, while Pena came very close to executing an armbar which could easily have ended the confrontation.
After that scare, Nunes resumed her work of destruction, unleashing three elbow strikes that bloodied the titleholder’s face.
Visibly drained of energy, both fighters couldn’t set up anything threatening at the start of the 5e round, but Nunes managed to take advantage of a final throw to continue inflicting damage, despite Pena’s remarkable determination.
Nunes admitted in a post-fight interview that she reserves the right to return to Brazil, “where I haven’t been in three years,” before thinking about her future title defense plans.
Moreno met Kara France K.-O.
In the co-main event, Brandon Moreno won spectacularly by K.-O. technique in the 3rd round against Kai Kara France,
With this 20th career victory, Moreno has thus captured the interim flyweight title and is now in the saddle to possibly face Deiveson Figueiredo.
He previously defeated Kara France by unanimous decision in December 2019 at UFC 245.
The Mexican, however, seemed in danger to start the third assault, he who suffered a worrying cut under the right eye, courtesy of an elbow from his opponent.
But this blunder did not prevent him from remaining offensive, and with less than a minute to elapse in the same engagement, he made Kara France flinch by dealing him a devastating blow to the liver.
Seconds later, the Tijuana native completed the job with a flurry of punches that forced Herb Dean to step in, at 4:34.
Moreno (20-6-2) had faced Figueiredo in his last two bouts, winning the first and losing the second.
For his part, Fara France (24-10) had tasted victory in each of his last three fights. It was the first time he had fought in a five-round duel.
Pavlovich: a 13th K.-O. in 16 wins
In another main card bout, heavyweight Sergei Pavlovich took just 55 seconds to end Derrick Lewis’ night.
Pavlovich quickly pounced on his American rival, and was able to shake Lewis off with a combination of power shots.
The crowd, who felt that referee Dan Miragliotta ended the clash prematurely, were quick to voice their displeasure with hearty boos.
Lewis, 37, has now lost three of his last fights.