Twists and turns have become customary in the career of
Julianna
Pena. From blue-chip prospect and reality show villain to
motherhood, title contention and an unexpected reign as undisputed
champion, she has taken a road less traveled.
Pena finds herself on the rebound entering 2023, having surrendered
the
Ultimate Fighting Championship women’s bantamweight crown in a
unanimous decision loss to
Amanda
Nunes in their UFC 277 rematch on July 30. The setback snapped
a modest two-fight winning streak for the Sikjitsu standout and
left her with plenty of questions to answer ahead of a likely
trilogy bout with the Nunes. Pena owns a 7-3 record across her 10
appearances inside the Octagon.
As Pena awaits word on her next assignment from UFC matchmakers, a
look at five of the many moments that have come to define her thus
far:
1. Ultimate Arrival
“The Venezuelan Vixen” stopped
Jessica
Rakoczy with unanswered punches from the mount in the women’s
bantamweight tournament final at “The Ultimate Fighter 18” Finale
on Nov. 30, 2013 at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas.
Pena closed the deal 4:59 into Round 1, becoming the first-ever
female winner on “The Ultimate Fighter” reality series. A decorated
boxer with limited mixed martial arts experience, Rakoczy never
stood a chance. Pena went to work after the second of her two
takedowns. She softened Rakoczy with ground-and-pound, compromised
her guard and eventually moved to full mount. For nearly two full
minutes, she tore into Rakoczy with elbows and punches, forcing the
stoppage with only a second remaining on the clock.
2. Point of Validation
Pena climbed into a new tax bracket in the Ultimate Fighting
Championship women’s bantamweight division when she overcame some
early adversity to claim a unanimous decision over former
two-division Ring of Fire champion
Cat Zingano
in the featured UFC 200 prelim on July 9, 2016 at the T-Mobile
Arena in Las Vegas. All three judges struck 29-28 scorecards.
Zingano controlled the first five minutes with takedowns, top
control and ground-and-pound. Pena was undeterred. She flipped the
switch in Round 2, where she reversed a takedown, advanced to
Zingano’s back, set her hooks and fished for the rear-naked choke.
Though her bid failed, momentum was hers. She picked up where she
left off in the third round, executing a takedown inside the first
10 seconds before hammering away at Zingano with ground-and-pound
and again shifting to her back.
3. Out on a Limb
Valentina
Shevchenko cemented her claim as the No. 1 contender for the
Ultimate Fighting Championship women’s bantamweight title when she
submitted Pena with an armbar in the second round of their UFC on
Fox 23 main event on Jan. 28, 2017 at the Pepsi Center in Denver.
“The Ultimate Fighter 18” winner conceded defeat 4:29 into Round 2.
Shevchenko answered aggression with cold calculation. The
Kyrgyzstani kickboxer surprised Pena with a pair of takedowns from
the clinch in the first round, peppering her with ground-and-pound
before evading an attempted armbar. “The Venezuelan Vixen” turned
the tables in the second, where she executed a takedown of her own
and set up shop in Shevchenko’s full guard. Pena was content to
strike from there, even as her opponent moved her legs and hips
into position for the armbar. Shevchenko maintained her grip on the
maneuver through a desperate scramble and forced the tapout. It was
Pena’s first setback in nearly four years.
4. Sent to the Shadow Realm
Germaine
de Randamie continued her evolution as a mixed martial artist
and put Pena to sleep with a guillotine choke in the third round of
their UFC on ESPN 16 women’s bantamweight showcase on Oct. 3, 2020
at the Flash Forum in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. “The
Venezuelan Vixen” lost consciousness 3:25 into Round 3. De Randamie
dropped the Sikjitsu standout to a knee with a clean right hand in
the first round, only to see her momentum interrupted by a late
takedown. Pena tripped the decorated muay thai practitioner to the
floor less than 90 seconds into the middle stanza, applied her
ground-and-pound and fished for a guillotine of her own before
surviving an attempted Von Flue choke from the Dutchwoman. “The
Ultimate Fighter” Season 18 winner scored with a right cross-left
hook combination to start the decisive third round, moved into
clinch range and changed levels for a takedown. However, she left
her neck exposed in her haste to return to the mat, and de Randamie
laced her arms into the guillotine before her opponent could
respond. Soon after, Pena went limp.
5. Golden Girl
Pena sprang one of the biggest upsets in mixed martial arts history
when she submitted Nunes with a rear-naked choke and claimed the
undisputed women’s bantamweight championship in the second round of
their UFC 269 co-main event on Dec. 11, 2021 at T-Mobile Arena in
Las Vegas. Nunes checked out 3:26 into Round 2, suffering her first
defeat in more than seven years. Pena waded through considerable
difficulty in the first round, where the champion zeroed in on her
leg with kicks, dumped her to the mat and transitioned to her back.
She turned it into a brawl in Round 2, and Nunes could not keep up.
Pena battered the
American Top Team star with jabs and clubbing right hands,
walked through the shots that were fired in response and waited for
the Brazilian to exhaust herself. She then executed a takedown,
moved to the back when faced with little resistance and cinched the
choke for the shocking finish.