There could be another possible contender to the UFC Women’s Bantamweight crown currently held by Ronda Rousey and that person is no other than Julianna Pena.
The Venezuelan Vixen is coming off a unanimous decision victory over Jessica Eye at UFC 192 held in Houston last Saturday and could be in line for a possible title shot. But she may have to get in line first.
Pena was able to pull off the win by grounding Eye in an effort to waylay her strikes. The Venezuelan Vixen’s ploy seemed to work though she did receive a knee strike from eye in the second round that hit her on the jaw.
Eye was penalized a point for the infraction for the illegal hit and restarted the fight.
By the time round three started, Pena reverted to her tactics of grounding Eye. Pena attempted to lock on some holds but Eye was able to find a way to escape it on multiple occasions.
At the end of five rounds though, it was clear that the grounding technique for Pena worked, earning her a unanimous decision that boosted her record to 3-0 in the UFC.
More importantly, it was Pena’s first win against a top-10 opponent and now the Venezuelan Vixen wants a shot at Rousey.
However, the question now is will that unanimous decision be enough to land her a title shot?
If ever, Pena will have to get in line as far as getting a shot at the UFC Women’s champion.
She is scheduled to go up against Holly Holm at UFC 193 this coming November 14 at the Etihad Stadium in Melbourne, Australia.
Rousey will test the striking prowess of Holm in what is seen to be another blockbuster and revenue generating fight for the UFC. Check out the video promo for that fight below.
After that, there is no word on who the UFC plans to pit against the UFC Women’s champion though the names of Cristian ‘Cyborg’ Justino and Meisha Tate are lingering in the air.
Justino is scheduled to be in action this November as well at Invicta FC 14 with the venue yet to be announced.
Meanwhile, Tate was the original opponent mentioned to be facing Rousey. Seeing that it would be the third time both would be meeting, UFC President Dana White opted for a new face instead. That third meeting however is not totally counted out just yet.
So skimming through the list of possible opponents and assuming Rousey does win expectedly over Holm, where does this position Pena for a possible title shot?
The thought will certainly be left up in the air for sure. Right now, Pena is savouring her win and hoping that his climb would be enough for a possible clash with the undefeated Rousey.
"Why not look too far ahead? I did not get in this sport to be in the bottom roster. I got in this sport to let the world know I'm the toughest 135-pound female fighter in the world,” Pena said in a post-fight interview via MMAFighting.com.
"I'm 6-0. Ronda's 6-0," she stated. "I don't think that it's out of the realm of possibility. I'm looking to be in a title shot."
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