In A Division Starved For Contenders, Julianna Pena Is The Next Big Thing

Julianna Pena let out the frustration of over 15 months off from a serious knee injury at yesterday’s (Sat., April 4, 2015) UFC Fight Night 63 from the Patriot Center in Fairfax, Virginia.

Bludgeoning Milana Dudieva with a “Performance of the Night”-winning first round TKO, Pena scored her first win since winning The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) 18 women’s bantamweight Finale back in 2013.

Looking aggressive and motivated as ever, “The Venezuelan Vixen” pushed forward with a relentless offense to mount Dudieva and batter her until the ref had no choice but to stop the bout. Check out the highlights of Pena’s comeback win right here:

The victory was not only crucial in that it gave Pena the confidence of returning to the win column, but also established her as a legitimate title contender in a division that is absolutely lacking legitimate contenders. Some would say it’s too early to for her to battle Ronda Rousey, and indeed they are correct.

Despite her bulldozing power and finishing ability, it’s clear that Pena will need to get a few more wins under her belt before she squares off with the dominant champion; however, she’s absolutely in the best division to get a title shot in short order.

Undefeated no. 9, Bethe Correia locked up a title shot against “Rowdy” at August’s UFC 191 after defeating two of the queen’s teammates in Jessamyn Duke and Shayna Baszler.

Pena could get her title shot in similar fashion. In reality, she’s at the forefront of crop of dangerous women’s challengers that will comprise the core of title contenders as long as Rousey rules over the division, where she’s absolutely demolished the entirety of the top 5 in short order.

Jessica Eye could be considered among this group of ladies, but she’s ranked at No. 6 and nearly got the next title shot against Rousey.

The difference between the current top 5 and the future of the division is their sense of urgency in looking for finishes, which they often get in action-packed fashion. Yes, it’s harder to finish opponents who are ranked higher, but the top of the division just hasn’t been looking to make a statement in most of their bouts.

Aside from top-ranked Cat Zingano, who possesses two TKO finishes and was recently destroyed in 14 seconds by Rousey at UFC 184, the rest of the women’s bantamweight top 5 only has a grand total of one UFC stoppage, a TKO victory by Sara McMann over Sheila Gaff at April 2013’s UFC 159.

By contrast, No. 8 Amanda Nunes recently put on a clinic in decimating veteran Shayna Baszler at UFC Fight Night 62, and even though she was toppled by Zingano at UFC 178, she’s an aggressive attacker who can put on some of the best fights the division can offer.

Pena finished her last two bouts in devastating style, no. 12 Marion Reneau has shown lethal skills on both the feet and the mat, and no. 14 Germaine de Randemie looked crisp and devastating with her Muay Thai in recently dominating Larissa Pachecho.

Overall the women’s bantamweight division is largely thought to be devoid of contenders, but that just isn’t true. While these ladies may not present the greatest threat to Rousey’s iron grip on the throne just yet, they are going all-out to make a statement that they deserve to fight for the belt, and that’s a lot more than could be said for the top-rated fighters.

Pena will spearhead that movement; she already is. Will she have a legitimate shot at the belt when she gets her almost inevitable date with Rousey?

Photo Credit: Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports