Julianna Pena is hospitalized and taken to a plastic surgeon after losing a “large part” of her forehead in her brutal UFC loss to Amanda Nunes, which saw her lose her bantamweight title in Dallas
- WARNING – GRAPHIC CONTENT
- Julianna Pena has been hospitalized after suffering an injury at UFC 277 in Texas
- Amanda Nunes beat Julianna Pena by unanimous decision on Saturday night
- The Brazilian produced a master class performance to drop Pena three times
- UFC boss Dana White confirmed that Pena went to a plastic surgeon afterwards
Julianna Pena has been hospitalized to see a plastic surgeon after losing a “large chunk” of her forehead during her loss to Amanda Nunes at UFC 277 in Texas.
The 32-year-old, who was crowned the UFC bantamweight champion in December, was knocked down three times and left with a gash on her forehead before the judges ended the fight 50-45, 50-44, 50-43 in Nunes’ favor.
The Washington-born fighter suffered multiple gruesome blows to the head and ended up looking like something out of a horror movie as blood ran down her face.
Julianna Pena suffered multiple horrific blows to the head in her UFC 277 loss to Amanda Nunes
Pena was struck down three times and left in battle with a gash on his forehead
UFC boss Dana White confirmed that once her defeat was confirmed by the judges after going the distance, she was immediately taken to specialists.
White said: “Julianna is missing a big chunk on her forehead.
“She’s about to see a plastic surgeon.”
UFC boss Dana White confirmed Pena was taken to specialists immediately after the loss
White also admitted that this could be the end of Pena’s incredible career, although it wasn’t until December that he was crowned UFC bantamweight champion.
White added: “It takes some time to heal and then I don’t know.
“She broke quite a bit tonight, she got five or six knockdowns in the first two rounds.
“She was injured. She needs to take some time off, relax, spend some time with her daughter and then we’ll go from there.
Nunes hosted a mixed martial arts clinic Saturday at the American Airlines Center in Dallas in front of a crowd of 19,442 at the American Airlines Center in Dallas to defeat Julianna Pena by unanimous decision after a thrilling five round bout to reclaim the bantamweight title.
Amanda Nunes reclaimed her UFC bantamweight title against Julianna Pena in Dallas
Nunes’ five-year tenure as bantamweight champion came to an end when she lost the belt to Venezuela’s Pena in December 2021, but the Brazilian recaptured it on Saturday with an impressive masterclass before moving the fight to the mat and a series of dangerous ones Fight survived submission attempts from Pena.
The 34-year-old fought from a left-handed stance, dropping Pena three times in the second round – twice with the right and once with the left – as her opponent struggled to find her reach. On the ground, Pena didn’t fare much better.
Nunes managed a string of takedowns in the final three rounds and spent most of the time in lead position, but she had to survive a menacing attempt at an armbar submission midway through the fourth round when Pena desperately fought off Nunes as it rained elbows on her.
The judges awarded Nunes a unanimous decision victory that added another belt to her
The judges rewarded Nunes with a unanimous decision victory in which she added the bantamweight belt to her featherweight title as she regained her status as reigning two-weight division champion.
White added: “I thought it was totally dominant. There were five knockdowns in the first two rounds. There is a big difference between submission attempts and knockdowns.
“They’re not even comparable. Julianna is tough as nails and her will to win is second to none. She wanted to win.
“I think as dominant as Amanda was – and she was dominant tonight – I didn’t think it was tight in any way, shape or form. It was a complete shutout.’