UFC legend Amanda Nunes gave Holly Holm a taste of her own medicine in their UFC 239 title fight.
Amanda Nunes was at the peak of her powers when she took on former UFC women’s bantamweight champion Holly Holm at UFC 239. Nunes, arguably the greatest knockout artist in women’s MMA history, earned a slew of wild finishes during her two-division title reign.
Fresh off her legendary finish of Cris Cyborg to become the UFC’s first two-division female champion, Nunes faced another legendary foe in Holm, who was back in a UFC title fight after knocking out Ronda Rousey at UFC 193. Holm’s win over Rousey is regarded as arguably the greatest upset in the promotion’s history.
Holm knocked out Rousey with a devastating head kick at UFC 193 to earn the UFC women’s bantamweight title. Four years later against Nunes, she’d suffer a similar fate.
Amanda Nunes mirrored Holly Holm’s legendary KO of Ronda Rousey at UFC 239
Nunes and Holm served as the UFC 239 co-main event for Jon Jones vs. Thiago Santos. It was a massive card to mark the promotion’s annual International Fight Week event in Las Vegas.
Nunes and Holm traded heavy blows in the opening minutes of the fight, with Nunes utilizing nasty low kicks to stifle Holm’s movement early on. But Holm didn’t need long to find her timing, putting the champion Nunes on her back foot midway through the round.
Nunes found her confidence around the two-minute mark of Round 1 when she landed a brutal right hand that nearly dropped Holm. Seconds later, Nunes would seal the deal with one of the most horrific knockouts in women’s MMA history.
Just under the one-minute mark, Nunes landed a perfectly-timed head kick that sent Holm collapsing to the canvas, before clinching the victory with a few ground strikes. Watch Nunes get the finish below.
Holm’s loss to Nunes would mark the final time she’d compete in a UFC title fight in her legendary career. She announced her retirement from MMA last year after a second-round submission defeat to Kayla Harrison.
As for Nunes, she’d continue to set a high standard for the women’s bantamweight division with title defenses over Germaine de Randamie and Irene Aldana. She opted to hang up the gloves after UFC 289, but is potentially months away from an Octagon comeback.
Amanda Nunes set for comeback fight against a former teammate after UFC 316
Nunes sat Octagonside as Harrison became the UFC women’s bantamweight champion on Saturday at UFC 316. Harrison submitted Nunes’s two-time rival, Julianna Pena, with five seconds left in Round 2 to cap off a remarkable three-fight stint in the UFC.
Nunes entered the cage to face off with Harrison and confirm her retirement reversal. The two legends will likely square off in early 2026, as Nunes isn’t back in the Drug Free Sport testing pool, as of this writing.
Nunes vs. Harrison will be the biggest fight in women’s MMA history after years in the making. Time will tell if Nunes’s comeback attempt will blossom into a third UFC bantamweight title reign.
