I couldn't help but laugh at Julianna Pena justifying her comment after the fight against the former champion because no one else does it.
After their controversial victory To regain the women's bantamweight title, Pena ignored Harrison as the No. 1 contender – who was shown backstage on a split screen set up by the UFC – and instead called for a trilogy against Nunes, who has been retired since the 2023 fight press conference Pena said she felt it was necessary to call Nunes because ““ and the same goes for the rest of the fighters in the division.
Of course, Harrison after training together at American Top Team for years, but that's not in their immediate plans at the moment.
“I’m not going to confront Amanda,” Harrison told MMA Fighting. “I definitely won’t confront Amanda until I have the title.
“Then when I feel like I’ve done that, I’ll build the biggest fight in the history of women’s MMA. But until then, I demand this title.”
Harrison obviously wants to claim the title first, and that path currently lies through a fight against Pena.
Additionally, the two-time Olympic gold medalist also admits that the biggest obstacle to a potential showdown with Nunes is that she is still retired.
While Nunes since In the end, she still isn't officially back and even if she announces plans to fight again, she would first have to undergo a drug test for at least six months, according to the UFC's anti-doping policy.
In other words, Harrison doesn't want to waste her time on a potential matchup that isn't happening right now against an opponent who isn't even on the active roster.
“It just makes me look like an asshole at some point,” Harrison said. “When everyone asks, 'Do you want to fight?'” [Amanda]?' I think so, and Amanda's like, “Dude, leave me alone.” [alone]how shut up! Leave me alone.'
“For me it's nothing personal. Of course I want to fight Amanda. I have great respect for everything she has accomplished in this sport, and for me there is no greater honor than to say, “I want what you have.” A 20-year-old girl walked in [American Top Team] morning and said to myself, 'One day I'm going to beat your ass,' I'd say, 'Yeah, let's go!' That's the kind of energy I want.”
Nunes may be the long-term goal, but Harrison just wants to think about the UFC title and Pena for now.
Aside from a few bumps and bruises, Harrison doesn't expect it to take her too long to recover from her win at UFC 307, but more than anything she hopes Pena doesn't face another long layoff after sitting out for over two years before her showdown with Pennington.
“I’m not waiting two years,” Harrison said. “I also need a bit of time to recover from the weight loss because I lose half of myself every time. But I'm ready at any time. I’ll get ready.”
