Megan Anderson is confident in her chances to pull off an all-time upset against Amanda Nunes at UFC 259.
Anderson (11-4 MMA, 3-2 UFC) will get her opportunity to dethrone dual-division champ Nunes (20-4 MMA, 13-1 UFC) when she challenges for the women’s featherweight belt in Saturday’s co-headliner, which takes place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas and streams on ESPN+ pay-per-view following prelims on ESPN and ESPN+.
No one has been able to solve the riddle that is “The Lioness” in her past 11 fights dating back to 2014. Anderson is being given the widest betting odds of anyone to face Nunes during her UFC career, but the Aussie thinks she has advantages no other opponent has.
“I feel like I’m the first true featherweight that she’s fought that brings a lot of power,” Nunes told reporters, including MMA Junkie, during Thursday’s UFC 259 pre-fight news conference. “I know Felicia (Spencer’s) a featherweight, but I think styles make fights. I think I have a lot of power that I bring to the table, and I don’t think she’s seen that in a very long time.”
Anderson failed to mention that Nunes knocked out Cris Cyborg – the most proven women’s 145-pound knockout artist in history – in less than a minute. However, she does goes into the fight with some potential advantages, nonetheless.
Nunes has never fought anyone with the size and length Anderson brings to the table. The 6-foot challenger towered over the 5-foot-8 titleholder during their first faceoff following the press conference, and if Anderson can put that to good use, she may have a shot.
There haven’t been many flaws in Nunes’ game over the years, as she’s built herself into one of the most decorated fighters of all time, but Anderson said she believes in her preparation and strategy.
“I think everyone has holes in their game,” Anderson said. “I think you just have to find them. We’ve looked at the tape, and we’ve got a gameplan, so we’re ready to capitalize on those moments when we see them.”
Anderson isn’t ignorant to the fact the public gives her little chance to beat Nunes. Every major upset is unforeseen until it happens, though, and Anderson goes into the fight ready to capitalize on her moment.
“It’s been a long road to get here, but I’m glad that I finally got here,” Anderson said. “I grew a lot as as person, as a martial artist getting to this point. I’m just ready to put on a show. Everyone’s invincible until they’re not.”
Megan Anderson plots upset of Amanda Nunes: ‘Everyone’s invincible until they’re not’
