Michael Bisping doesn’t see a need for a third fight between Amanda Nunes and Julianna Pena.
Nunes (22-5 MMA, 15-2 UFC) avenged her upset submission loss to Peña (11-5 MMA, 7-3 UFC) from December 2021 by battering “The Venezuelan Vixen” for five rounds in this past Saturday’s UFC 277 main event to reclaim the bantamweight title.
Nunes said she could have finished the fight earlier, but decided to prove that that their first outing was a fluke. Regardless of whether or not Nunes could finish the tough Peña, Bisping thinks both fights proved the UFC dual-champ is better.
“I don’t think we’ll see anything different, a different performance,” Bisping said on his “Believe You Me” podcast. “I think Nunes is the better fighter. I think that was clear. That was clear in the first round of the first fight, as well. She got tired, and that’s not Julianna Peña’s fault. That all belongs on the side of Nunes. Fail to prepare, prepare to fail. COVID, whatever, it’s got nothing to do with Julianna. You cannot take away from her performance because her opponent got tired. But I think we clearly saw that she’s the better fighter, so we don’t need the rubber match.”
Peña called for a trilogy bout with Nunes, and if the promotion decides to book a third fight, Bisping wouldn’t be opposed to it despite thinking it’s unnecessary.
“However, in terms of what’s fair, generally if they’re (tied) one apiece in title fights, you see a third fight,” Bisping added. “So if they make the third fight, I’ll understand it. And if they don’t make a third fight, I will also understand it.”