Norma
Dumont recently went off on Julianna
Pena, who will receive the next
UFC women’s bantamweight title shot.
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Pena is set to challenge Raquel
Pennington for the bantamweight title in the co-main event at
UFC
307 on Oct. 5 at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City, Utah.
According to Dumont, Pena getting the next title shot is a slap in
the face of the rest of the division. Dumont believes “The
Venezuelan Vixen” has done nothing of significance to warrant a
title shot.
Pena’s biggest claim to fame is a submission win over Amanda
Nunes to win the bantamweight title at UFC 269 in 2021 in one
of the biggest upsets in the history of the sport. Dumont claims
Pena’s win over Nunes came on a night when the “Lioness” just
wasn’t herself. Dumont also recalled Pena’s lopsided beatdown on
the way to a unanimous decision loss against “The Lioness” in their
rematch at UFC 277 in July 2022. Dumont believes it is really
unfair that the upcoming title shot goes to Pena, considering she
hasn’t fought since.
“It was really a slap on the face of the entire division,” Dumont
told MMA Mania. “Julianna, who hasn’t really won any
fights, hasn’t fought in so long, and even she beat Amanda in a day
that Amanda just wasn’t Amanda. She just wasn’t there. And then on
the other fight, she got the full beating, three nights of beatings
worth in one night. That was the real Julianna right there. Then
she comes back after two and a half years of running away from any
fight offered to her to then be given a gift and fighting for the
belt. So yeah, it’s not good. A slap in the face of the division,
but also not the first time that it has happened.”
While Dumont doesn’t consider Pennington a dominant champ, she just
considers Pena bad enough for “Rocky” to retain her title at UFC
307.
“I think Raquel wins this fight, not because I think she’s a
dominant champion, because I don’t think that,” Dumont said. “But I
just think Julianna is just that bad. I mean, she got submitted by
Germaine [de Randamie]. I mean, come on. It’s weird to say Raquel
is gonna win, but I think she wins this one.”
Currently riding a four-fight winning streak, Dumont is slated to
take on Irene
Aldana at UFC
306 on Sept. 14 at The Sphere in Las Vegas.