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Cormier: Nunes should've gone to sleep vs. Pena

Jeff Bottari / UFC / Getty

Daniel Cormier wishes Amanda Nunes refrained from tapping out in her fight with Julianna Pena at UFC 269.

Cormier, a former UFC two-division champion, served as a color commentator at the event.

"We speak about her in such legendary terms. ... To tap like that after being in that choke, it almost feels like she should've just went to sleep," Cormier said on ESPN's "DC & RC" show.

He added, "If you're going to lose your place amongst the greats, even if it's temporary - she can go back and beat Julianna Pena - it felt like she should go out on her shield more."

In Saturday's co-feature, Pena submitted Nunes with a rear-naked choke to capture the women's bantamweight title and pull off one of the biggest UFC upsets of all time.

It was Nunes' first loss since 2014 and snapped a 12-fight winning streak.

Pena and Nunes have expressed interest in booking an immediate rematch.

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