Dethroned UFC champion Julianna Pena has dismissed fears she would need plastic surgery after her bloody defeat by Amanda Nunes in Dallas last weekend.
Pena, who stunned Nunes to win the bantamweight world title last December, was dominated over five one-sided rounds in the sequel. And she was left with a nasty gash on her forehead and blood streaming down her face as she relinquished her title.
UFC president Dana White claimed the fighter was taken straight to hospital to see a plastic surgeon after "losing a chunk of forehead" but Pena has since said she simply needed some stitches. "Tougher than a two dollar steak," she wrote on social media. "Thanks for the love everyone! Just a cat scratch that required a few stitches, no chunks missing, no surgery necessary. Love you all! We’re 1-1 now."
White had said in the immediate aftermath that Pena would need surgery, saying: "Julianna’s got a big chunk missing from her forehead. She’s going to see a plastic surgeon right now. (She’ll) take some time to heal, and then I don’t know. She got pretty banged up tonight. It was like five or six knockdowns in the first two rounds. She was hurt. She needs to take some time off, relax, spend some time with her daughter and then we’ll go from there."
Pena's win over Nunes was one of the biggest upsets in UFC history but she was always second best in the return bout. She is unlikely to be handed a third instalment with Nunes, who is once again a double champion, eyeing a bout with flyweight champion Valentina Shevchenko.
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Nunes, who has already beaten the Russian twice, said: “She’s a champion too, that would be awesome," but also claimed her rival lost her last fight when Shevchenko claimed Nunes had copied her tactics. "That’s funny," Nunes added. "She has to put out there something to stand out, because right now, as a champion, Valentina, she lost her last fight. I really think if Taila [Santos] doesn’t get that headbutt, that fight could have been way different."
Nunes is likely to defend her featherweight title in her next fight having not done so since she beat Megan Anderson almost 18 months ago.
