Amanda Nunes speaks on Mental Health!! Being a professional athlete may be the dream for so many but can quickly turn into a nightmare. From the outside looking in Amanda Nunes has completed MMA. From being the greatest female fighter of all time and defeating multiple champions on her way to cementing her legacy. Recently she opened up about her struggles following retiring from fighting. Stepping away from the one thing that got you out of bed is hard and she said it made her anxious and showed her how important it is to have goals in her life. Does she get it done this weekend?
Amanda Nunes has spoken openly about the mental health challenges that followed her exit from professional fighting, describing how walking away from the sport left her anxious and underlined how much she needs goals in her life.
The Brazilian, who is 38, has nothing left to prove in the cage. Her record stands at 23-5-0, and she is widely regarded as the greatest female fighter in MMA history after beating multiple champions on the way to cementing her legacy. Stepping away from the one thing that drove her day to day, she said, proved harder than many outsiders might assume.
The comments land as a reminder of the toll that leaving competition can take, even on an athlete who retires on her own terms. Nunes said the absence of a target to train for unsettled her, and that the experience showed her why purpose matters outside the sport.
A career that ended at the top
Nunes' most recent recorded fight was a unanimous-decision win over Irene Aldana in a title bout at UFC 289 on June 10, 2023. That followed a unanimous-decision victory over Julianna Pena at UFC 277 on July 30, 2022, a championship rematch in which she avenged the second-round submission loss Pena handed her at UFC 269 on December 11, 2021.
That run shows a fighter who answered her biggest setback directly. The rematch came about seven and a half months after the defeat, and she won all five rounds' worth of scoring on the cards to take the belt back.
Her numbers underline the style that carried her. She landed 4.55 significant strikes per minute at 51 percent accuracy, and averaged 2.73 takedowns per 15 minutes alongside 0.7 submission attempts. At five-foot-eight with a 69-inch reach, she paired that volume with wrestling and finishing ability, a mix that made her difficult to prepare for across weight classes.
Why it matters
- Nunes' openness adds to a growing conversation about athletes' wellbeing after competition ends.
- Her emphasis on setting new goals offers a template for fighters facing life after the sport.
- Coming from an athlete of her stature, the message may carry weight with active fighters weighing their own futures.
