The UFC wrapped up yet another amazing event in Canada this weekend. It was a very historic night for Canada. All six Canadian fighters on the card were victorious. Although this is an amazing feat, that was not the biggest news to come out of UFC 289. The retirement of women’s bantamweight and featherweight champion Amanda Nunes announced her retirement following her unanimous decision win over Irene Aldana. Nunes dominated the fight, not losing a single round. The double champion goes out on top as the greatest woman fighter in UFC history.
Accomplishments
Amanda Nunes made her professional debut in 2008 at just 17 years old. After a 7-3 start to her career, she got the call-up to the UFC in 2013. Nunes started her career in the UFC with a 2-1 record in her first three fights. After her loss, she went on a tremendous 12-fight win streak. That win streak spanned over an incredible seven years. Nunes took on bantamweight champion Miesha Tate at UFC 200 for her first opportunity to win a title. Not only did Nunes win, but she also dominated Tate for three minutes before ultimately submitting her. In her first title defense, she took on Hall of Famer Ronda Rousey. Nunes made it look easy again, knocking out Rousey in 48 seconds.
Two Straps
Two more title defenses after that made Nunes decide to test her luck at featherweight. She took on featherweight champion Cris Cyborg at UFC 232 in 2018. Most fighters who move up in weight have a very difficult time adjusting to the different fighting styles. Not only did Nunes adjust well, but she also looked even better. Nunes knocked out Cyborg in 51 seconds to gain her status as a double champion. The first and only woman to ever accomplish this feat. She continued her dominance after this, defending her title four times from 2019-2021. It looked to be more of the same on December 11, 2021. She took on rising star Julianna Pena for her eighth title defense. Round one was a complete domination by Nunes, but the champ got caught by a rear naked choke in round two. Julianna Pena defeated Amanda Nunes in what was considered the biggest upset in title fight history.
A Fresh Start
Amanda Nunes contemplated retirement after her loss to Pena. Instead of retiring, she moved training camps to get a fresh start and get that urge to fight again. Nunes and Pena coached the 2022 season of The Ultimate Fighter before fighting on July 30, 2022. Nunes looked like her old self in this fight, winning every round en route to a unanimous decision victory. The trilogy was supposed to take place this weekend, however, Pena pulled out due to injury. Nunes finished her astonishing career on top of the world, sealing the deal as the greatest woman’s fighter of all time.
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