UFC
Amanda Nunes announces retirement at UFC 289
After defending her title vs Irene Aldana, the Brazilian superstar decides to leave the UFC as the reigning champion
Amanda Nunes bids farewell to the UFC as an undisputed champion. Following her resounding unanimous decision victory over Irene Aldana at UFC 289 on Saturday night, the 35-year-old bantamweight champion announced her retirement from the sport.
Over the past nine years, Nunes has established herself as an unstoppable force in mixed martial arts. She has triumphed in 14 out of her last 15 bouts, including the recent victory against Aldana. During this dominant stretch, Nunes avenged her sole loss by reclaiming the bantamweight title in a thrilling rematch against Julianna Peña at UFC 277.
Despite boasting a Hall-of-Fame-worthy career and being widely regarded as arguably the best women’s fighter in UFC history, Nunes has faced questions about her motivation to continue competing at the highest level. UFC president Dana White openly expressed doubts about her drive before the rematch with Peña.
“Amanda is a multi-millionaire who is now at a completely different financial status,” White said 2022. She has a baby now. Her life – she is not that hungry savage she was when she started to take this run at becoming a world champion. A lot of that factors in.”
Nunes’ career speaks for itself
Nunes now joins an elite group of fighters who have held two titles simultaneously in UFC history: Conor McGregor (featherweight and lightweight) and Daniel Cormier (light heavyweight and heavyweight).
Prior to her retirement, the Brazilian superstar reigned as both the bantamweight and featherweight champion, having held the latter since December 2018.
Aldana stepped into the title fight as a late replacement, with the original plan being Nunes against Peña in a highly anticipated bout. However, Peña suffered broken ribs during training, leading to Aldana being named as the replacement for the main event on May 2. Although Aldana possessed a respectable 7-4 record in her 11 UFC fights, Nunes proved to be a significant leap in competition. The champion, once again, demonstrated her superiority, securing the eighth successful title defense of her illustrious career.