Amanda Nunes’ UFC retirement will bring an end to the women’s featherweight division
As Amanda Nunes rides off into the sunset, the women’s featherweight world title will likely do the same.
On Saturday night, ‘The Lioness’ added another dominant title defense to her resume, besting top-five contender Irene Aldana in decisive fashion over the course of their 25-minute affair. Following the one-sided scrap, Amanda Nunes laid down both her bantamweight and featherweight world titles alongside her gloves and officially announced her retirement from the sport after 15 years of excellence.
As she walks away from the sport, Amanda Nunes will leave behind two title belts. The bantamweight title, which she defended against Aldana in the UFC 289 main event, will likely find a new owner before 2023 comes to a close. The likeliest scenario would see former titleholder Julianna Pena squaring off with veteran standout Raquel Pennington to crown a new 135-pound queen. As for the featherweight title, don’t expect to see it on the line anytime soon. Or ever again, for that matter.
Addressing Amanda Nunes’ retirement following UFC 289, Dana White wished the general consensus women’s MMA GOAT well in her future endeavors.
“Would I like to see her stick around and do some more? Absolutely! I love the kid. She’s been incredible to work with, she’s such a good human being and a great champion… But if she’s ready to go, you’ve got to be happy for her,” White said.
White also revealed that the women’s featherweight world title belt will likely ride off into the sunset with Amanda Nunes.
A Brief History of Amanda Nunes and the UFC Women’s Featherweight Division
The women’s featherweight championship was first introduced in 2017 with Germaine de Randamie defeating Holly Holm to become the division’s inaugural champion at UFC 208. Four months later, de Randamie was stripped of the title after refusing to defend the championship against top-ranked contender Cris Cyborg. The UFC would go on to book a title tilt between Cyborg and Tonya Evinger at UFC 214, a contest that Cyborg would go on to win, beginning a 517 reign at the 145-pound queen.
Amanda Nunes captured the title at UFC 232, defeating Cyborg in the first round of their champion vs. champion superfight. She went on to defend the title twice during her reign which lasted more than four and a half years. Unfortunately, the featherweight division failed to produce an adequate amount of viable contenders. Its only purpose in recent years was to market Nunes as a two-division champion, but with her retirement, there’s no reason to keep the practically empty division alive.
