Fighters with the most UFC champions defeated. π Nunes returns from retirement to challenge Kayla Harrison for the bantamweight title at MSG. A win would give her 9 and tie Jones for the top spot. π¦ @kalshi has Nunes at only 38% chance to beat Kayla Harrison at UFC 334. π Who wins? Comment π
Amanda Nunes is coming out of retirement to challenge Kayla Harrison for the bantamweight title at UFC 334 at Madison Square Garden, according to the report. A victory would give Nunes a ninth win over a UFC champion, tying her with Jones for the most in UFC history.
Nunes, known as "The Lioness," carries a 23-5-0 record and turns 38 this year. The Brazilian fights out of Lioness Studio and competes as an orthodox striker, standing five-foot-eight with a 69-inch reach. Her most recent recorded fight came on June 10, 2023, when she beat Irene Aldana by unanimous decision over five rounds at UFC 289 in a title bout. That followed a July 2022 unanimous-decision win over Julianna Pena in their rematch at UFC 277, which came seven months after Pena submitted her in the second round at UFC 269.
Her career numbers show a fighter who blends volume with accuracy. Nunes lands 4.55 significant strikes per minute at 51 percent accuracy, and she averages 2.73 takedowns and 0.7 submission attempts per 15 minutes. Those figures point to a fighter comfortable both trading on the feet and taking the fight to the mat.
Kayla Harrison holds the bantamweight title that Nunes is chasing, though no verified Harrison statistics are available to compare against Nunes' marks.
The matchup also carries a market angle. Kalshi, the prediction market, reportedly gives Nunes only a 38 percent chance of beating Harrison at UFC 334, making the returning veteran an underdog on that platform.
Why it matters
- A Nunes win would be her ninth over a UFC champion, tying Jones for the all-time lead.
- It would mark a title return after a layoff: her most recent recorded bout was in June 2023, more than three years before the November 2026 report date.
- Nunes is a five-round veteran, with her last two recorded fights, both title bouts, going the full 25 minutes.
- The event at Madison Square Garden gives the bout a marquee stage for a champion-versus-former-champion clash.
