Amanda Nunes has only been the UFC women’s bantamweight champion for three weeks now, but she already wants to get back in the cage and defend her title. Her ideal opponent? Ronda Rousey, of course.
The 28-year-old Brazilian, who took down Miesha Tate for the title, recently said if she got to pick her next fight it would be against the former face of the UFC, “to prove to everybody one more time I deserve to be here.” That’s how much Rousey’s dominant run is still hanging over the weight class. Even with the belt all her own, Nunes feels like she has to prove herself.
If Nunes does end up getting the fight she wants, she has little doubt that she’d emerge from the cage with the belt still on her waist. “I’ve been training jiu-jitsu since I started. Jiu-jitsu and judo both together. I know how to block very well judo throws, I know how to use my hips very well. I know if Ronda Rousey is coming back, I’m going to keep the championship,” she said.
What’s unclear is when Rousey is next planning to fight. Most think the UFC is saving her comeback for a New York City bout, slated for November at Madison Square Garden. If so, Nunes says, “I’m going to wait for her.”
But it might not be up to her. When UFC President Dana White last spoke about Rousey’s return, he said it would be up to her who she would fight next. Giving that power to Rousey proves that Nunes is right. If she wants to be top dog in her weight class, she’s got to take out Ronda.