Kayla Harrison Questions UFC 307 Win from ‘Scared’ Julianna Peña

Kayla Harrison disputes Julianna Peña's UFC 307 win over Raquel Pennington: "You don't get to steal the title..."

Christopher De Santiago | Oct 8, 2024

Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images

Kayla Harrison thinks Julianna Peña is looking to fight anybody but her.

The UFC women's bantamweight championship is coming back to Chicago after last weekend, as Peña grappled her way to a split decision victory over Raquel Pennington.

Though, the title win didn't come without controversy. Many, including Harrison, scored the fight three rounds to two for the defending champ Pennington.

Kayla Harrison Questions UFC 307 Win from ‘Scared’ Julianna Peña

UFC 307: Pennington vs Peña. / Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images

UFC CEO Dana White Bothered By 'Atrocious' UFC 307 Judging, Refereeing

Harrison Weighs In: "I Thought Rocky Won..."

The outcome of Peña vs. Pennington likely comes down to how you scored Round 1, with Peña taking Rounds 2 and 3 with her grappling and "Rocky" dropping Peña in Round 4 and outstriking her in Round 5.

According to UFC statistics, Peña outstruck Pennington in the opening round, but you could argue Pennington landed the more effective strikes on the feet.

"I haven't gone back and watched the first round yet, but I thought that 'Rocky' won," Harrison told TMZ. "It's kind of like an unspoken rule, right? You don't get to steal the title. You gotta take the title."

UFC 307: Pennington vs. Pena. / Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images

"I looked on MMA Decisions... I've never seen it where every single journalist agrees. They all said, 'Raquel won it.'"

Here's the #UFC307 media and fan scoring for Julianna Peña vs. Raquel Pennington via @MMADecisions. pic.twitter.com/QOwpfVn671
— Nolan King (@mma_kings) October 6, 2024

"I just feel bad for 'Rocky'," Harrison said of the now former champ Pennington. "She's not the most outspoken. She seems pretty, like, introverted. She's just like a quiet, humble champion. She's busted her a** for years, and she did it her way. She became UFC champion, and so to have it, that's got to suck. I feel for her. I mean, Julianna is so annoying..."

A few fights before Peña reclaimed the throne, Harrison captured a much clearer decision win - defeating Ketlen Viera to improve to 2-0 in the UFC. Harrison did face some adversity, however, the former PFL Champion pulled through to stake her claim as the division's next title contender.

Unfortunately for Harrison, Julianna Peña had other plans than to acknowledge her in her post-fight interview, instead calling for a fight with retired two-division champion Amanda Nunes.

What's next for the bantamweight division 👀 #UFC307 pic.twitter.com/jCCf2tPQtg
— UFC (@ufc) October 6, 2024

Harrison On Peña's Call-Out Snub

Nunes left her series with Peña all tied up at 1-1 when she decided to retire from MMA last year, with "The Venezuelan Vixen" calling her out ever since for a trilogy fight despite being dominated by Nunes in their 2022 rematch.

With no mention of Harrison's name in the Octagon, the UFC newcomer wouldn't be surprised if Peña positioned herself to fight another retired champion.

"I think she's just scared," Harrison said of Peña. "So, you got to make a lot of noise. I don't know... I think she'll do anything not to fight me. She's probably going to call out Ronda Rousey next."

Peña's History With Ronda Rousey

Oddly enough, Julianna Peña has called out the UFC's first female champion Ronda Rousey before, when she was still champion in 2022 and wanted to settle the score against Rousey all the way from 2013 where Peña won the The Ultimate Fighter and then-champ Rousey was a coach on the season.

“Ronda told me, ‘You’re going to give me a tougher fight than Miesha Tate could ever dream about - but when that day comes, I’m still going to kick your a**,’” Peña told SI's Justin Barrosso back in Apr. 2022. “And I said to her, ‘We’ll see.’ So, of course, I want to fight Ronda. That was a fight I was gunning for before I tore out my knee [in 2014]. When I came back, she lost and ran off and hasn’t come back. But I have a feeling that she wants to come back."

Former UFC Champion Ronda Rousey. / Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

“It bothers her that she left on two knockout losses, and that she never came back to avenge those. If she ever does get an itch to avenge those losses, I would love the opportunity to compete against her and fight her. I don’t think that that’s going to happen... But if she wants to challenge herself and come back to the real stuff, I’ll be here.”

Ronda Rousey retired from MMA in 2016 following back-to-back KO losses to Holly Holm and Amanda Nunes, with a return far out of the question for the 37-year-old. But, there is another Olympic-level judoka for Peña to fight, and her name is Kayla Harrison.

Harrison Weighs In: "I Thought Rocky Won..."

Harrison On Peña's Call-Out Snub

Peña's History With Ronda Rousey

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