Dana White Will Scrap Featherweight Division If Amanda Nunes Retires

UFC president Dana White admits the future of the women’s featherweight division hinges on Amanda Nunes and if she chooses to continue competing in MMA. The dual-weight UFC champion beat Felicia Spencer over five rounds at UFC 250 to defend her featherweight strap and make history in the process. Since that bout, Nunes has been talking about possibly retiring from the sport.

Speaking to media ahead of UFC on ESPN 11, White said “probably not,” when asked if the featherweight division would continue if Nunes retired.

Despite the fact he is currently contemplating folding one of the female divisions, White is more than happy with the state of women’s MMA especially at 135lbs – he’s even told his staff to sign more fighters for that division.

“I literally just told the guys the other day to build that division,” White said of the women’s bantamweight division. “Start signing girls, let’s start building that division, and now my girl’s talking about retirement, so apparently we gotta get on the same page and figure this out.

“[Nunes] can do whatever she wants to do,” White said. “She’s the queen. She can do whatever she wants. She’s having a baby, she’s got all these great things going on in her life right now personally and professionally she’s done anything that I’ve ever asked her to do. To go from Ronda Rousey to her, it’s actually been a joy working with the women in that division. I haven’t always seen eye-to-eye with Holly Holm’s people, but Holly Holm is one of the nicest human beings on planet earth. Dealing with that division has been awesome.”

While ‘The Lioness’ can do whatever she wants White is hoping she chooses to fight on after proving a lot of people wrong with her sensational performance at UFC 250, he said.

“I hope she doesn’t [retire]. She’s one of my favorite people ever and coming off of the performance that she just put on, I think that the beautiful thing was she came out of the de Randamie fight and everyone was like, ‘She looked human,’ this, that, all the critics were all over her. She fought arguably the best female striker of all-time, beat her, and she looked human in that fight.

“Then she came out and put a statement on her last performance. She looked incredible and put on an absolute clinic against one of the toughest women that I’ve ever seen in my life. After a performance like that, I would hate to think that she would want to retire, but if that’s true, and that’s where she’s at right now, then she probably should.” (Transcribed by MMA Fighting)

Do you think Dana White should scrap the featherweight division if Amanda Nunes retires?