Amanda Nunes Wins Her Bantamweight Championship Back In A Bloody War

Amanda Nunes is at the top of the UFC Women's Bantamweight Division once again after defeating Julianna Peńa in a five-round rematch that was as bloody as it was exciting. 

Nunes dominated the large majority of the fight, dropping Peńa three times in the second round and giving her a Ric Flair-level crimson mask, but the champ threw up TWENTY FIVE submission attempts over the course of five rounds, and several of them got to the level where I thought the fight was over - particularly a tight armbar where Julianna was squeezing with everything she had.

Don't get me wrong - Nunes had a phenomenal performance and return from defeat, but I think my main takeaway from this fight will be the toughness and resiliency of Julianna Peńa. 

Carmen Mandato. Getty Images.

She was swinging and desperately tossing up submissions until the very end, and broke out of a tiiiight choke with like 40 seconds left in the fifth and final round as well! This was AFTER Nunes literally squeezed the blood outta her head like it was a grape…. 

She didn't just get rocked by Nunes, either; she got dropped BAD multiple times….

….and got up and came forward immediately every time. It was a stunning performance that made what should've been a much more dominant fight very interesting. Nobody can deny that this bout was one of the more memorable of either woman's careers.

Seriously tho, congrats to Nunes - this comeback from the last fight to this one to get her Bantamweight Championship back will go down in history as a huge part of her legacy when the books are written one day. Greatest women's fighter of all time.