Kayla Harrison Dominates And Submits Amanda Nunes In The Battle Of GOATs
UFC 334's co-main event of Kayla Harrison vs Amanda Nunes was widely considered the battle of the GOATs going into tonight - the winner being able to claim they are officially* the greatest women's mixed martial artist of all time.
Amanda coming out of retirement for this superfight, and Kayla Harrison returning after an incredibly serious neck surgery; there were tons of questions surrounding the matchup, but I think one thing was pretty universally agreed upon: Amanda is going to want to stay on the feet and strike, while Kayla is going to want to drag the fight to the canvas and grapple. Much to everyone's surprise, though - that wasn't the case.
Amanda Nunes was relentlessly willing to engage in the grappling with Harrison, which was her downfall in FOUR STRAIGHT ROUNDS. Nunes would start looking good with her hands and immediately try to push Kayla up against the cage or shoot a takedown, and each and every time she did this, Harrison would reverse the position and end up in a dominant position.
Harrison finished the first three rounds on top of Amanda, and finally snatched her back for a submission in the fourth.
I thought Kayla showed that she was clearly the better fighter tonight, but make no mistake - that fight was winnable for Amanda if she simply implored a better gameplan. Maybe that's what happens when you leave one of the best MMA gyms in the world and run through a camp on your own....or maybe that's what happens after retirement. I dunno, but that was incredibly strange to watch.
I'd imagine that's the last we'll see of Nunes in the octagon, and there's even a chance that was the last we saw of Harrison. She told Joe Rogan she's definitely got some injuries coming out of that fight and has some big decisions to make when she gets home.
Shoutout Kayla on the big win tonight - never forget I taught her everything she knows.
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(She sprained my A/C joint filming this video and I'll never let her live that down)
*Based on resume alone I think it's obvious that Amanda Nunes should probably still be considered the GOAT. No shade to Kayla.