Amanda Nuñes may not be as fearsome as that other UFC champion Cris Cyborg but she has proven to be just as resilient and formidable.
Nuñes fights Raquel Pennington at UFC 224 and will come into the Octagon as the heavy favorite. She is faster, stronger, a cleaner striker and with a more diverse arsenal. Unless she is sick (with sinusitis maybe?) or just totally melts down, it’s hard to see Pennington winning or even taking control of a significant part of this bout.
Even if Nuñes slows down some—as she usually does in her extended fights—Pennington really does not seem capable of taking advantage and beating her up. Besides, fighters do improve and Nuñes will likely have solved her cardio issues.
Nuñes is also the superior athlete with a track record of finishing opponents. Her one weakness may be her inability to pace herself. Pennington may be able to exploit this because she is in a short list of fighters with the durability to make trouble for Nuñes if the fight goes into the late fourth or fifth round.
Nuñes has also shown continued development even after becoming champion. In contrast, Pennington has had to deal with multiple injuries.
It would be a mistake to dismiss Pennington or count her out too soon. She’s a very good fighter despite her unorthodox approach. She is tough, gritty, physical and can make fights ugly to her benefit. But she’s neither quick nor a good athlete. That just won’t cut it if you hope to beat Nuñes.
The only way Pennington could win is by charging in and making it an ugly fight from close range. That’s something Pennington is capable of doing. But it may not be enough.
Nuñes is probably too good at this point in her career to be taken unawares like that. Remember Ronda Rousey who basically had the same approach. Rousey was hit in the face and head several times while trying to reach in and grapple Nuñes.
Besides Pennington will be trying to recover from that nasty leg injury she had that kept her out of action. With a handicap like that, how do you beat someone that’s looked this unstoppable for so long?
Pennington has never been any kind of knockout striker, and while she can be a surprising submission threat, isn’t a consistent one. It won’t be as lopsided as most people think but Nuñes still beats Pennington convincingly.