Pena wants title shot, says Nunes is ducking her

After winning The Ultimate Fighter 18 and going 4-0 in the UFC, Julianna Pena is asking for her due.

During her appearance on Ariel Helwani's MMA Hour, Pena said it was "absurd" that she felt obligated to lobby for a title shot after the streak she's put together. She also questioned the merit of several fighters who'd previously fought for the women's bantamweight title, but didn't boast a similar track record, specifically mentioning Holly Holm, Miesha Tate, and Bethe Correia.

"She (Holly Holm) beat like two old ladies, then she fought to a draw, which was like a coin flip as to who won the fight, (Raquel) Pennington or Holly, and she gets a title shot out of thin air. Bethe Correia beat Shayna Baszler, who didn’t get past me on The Ultimate Fighter and she gets a title shot just by waving her hands, you know."

Tate was coming off a TKO loss to Cat Zingano before fighting Ronda Rousey for the belt at UFC 168. Pena, who recently beat Zingano by unanimous decision at UFC 200, argued her resume boasts conquests of the same fighters the former title challengers have squared off with.

"I keep beating these people that other people have beat and they get title shots, and I don’t get title shots, it is annoying."

Current division champion Amanda Nunes, who submitted Tate to win the belt at UFC 200, said she was not impressed with Pena's performance against Zingano, suggesting she should fight Valentina Shevchenko, who beat Holm last week, in a title eliminator. Pena sensed an ulterior motive in the idea.

"I think that that’s pretty funny. It just sounds like (Nunes') ducking the both of us, because she just had gotten a fight with Valentina, she knows what she’s working with. And she knows that I’m just getting warmed up and a five-round fight with me would be atrocious. She knows I’m going to stand right there in the pocket with her and throw blows. So I definitely don’t think that she welcomes that, and she’s kind of biding her time as much as she can."

Pena also acknowledged the possibility of Rousey taking on Nunes for the strap in her return to the octagon. While she didn't deem the potential showdown fair, she did respect Rousey's status within the UFC as it's first female household name, with a title shot being a nod to her accomplishments.

"She’s a big name, she’s the money fight, and they definitely want to see her with her belt back. If she decides to come back, I’m sure that they’re going to give it to her."