What’s the story?
On February 11th, Holly Holm and Germaine de Randamie will battle it out for the inaugural UFC women’s featherweight title, and one person who will be watching closely is Amanda Nunes. The “Lioness” has already captured the bantamweight title and now she wants to add the featherweight belt to her collection, and is calling for a shot at whoever wins the UFC 208 main event in Brooklyn. Both Holm and de Randamie have fought at 135lbs in the UFC, but neither has crossed paths with Nunes.
In case you didn’t know...
In the men’s divisions of the UFC, Randy Couture, BJ Penn and Conor McGregor have won championships at multiple weight classes but in the women’s divisions this feat has yet to be achieved. Nunes has already beaten two pioneers of women’s MMA in Miesha Tate and Ronda Rousey. If she manages to win the featherweight strap, she would certainly become one herself, becoming the first woman to hold UFC belts in two weight divisions.
The heart of the matter
There is a lack of contenders at 145lbs as of now, but there is a few women who could look to have a shot at winner of February 11th’s main event winner. The first one would be Amanda Nunes (14-4). She has defended her bantamweight title once and would be more than capable of challenging for the title. Second is Cristiane “Cyborg” Justino (16-1, 1NC). She is arguably the best women’s mixed martial artist today and she cannot make the 135lbs weight limit. This means having a featherweight division allows her to fight in the UFC, the biggest promotion in the world. She is currently appealing a failed USADA test, so her challenge for the title hinges on that result. The third possibilty is that of Megan Anderson (8-2), the recently crowned Invicta interim featherweight champion. If the UFC were to sign her, she would be a worthy challenger to the title.
What’s next?
It remains to be seen what approach the UFC takes with the new featherweight division. There are a few available contenders for whichever woman wins on February 11th, so it is best to wait and see. No doubt these women will give the fans great, memorable fights.
Sportskeeda’s take
Depending on what happens with her appeal, “Cyborg” is probably the most worthy challenger. She hasn’t lost a fight since her professional debut and has dominated everyone she fought. Amanda Nunes is also becoming a rising star and a women’s two weight world champion is definitely the sort of fighter the UFC want on their roster. Megan Anderson is still green but a title shot in the UFC could give her an opportunity to shine.
