Juliana Pena will be attending UFC 297 on January 20, 2024.
The first UFC pay-per-view (PPV) of 2024 is set to take place in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. New middleweight champion Sean Strickland is set to defend his title in the main event against Drikas du Plessis. Just before that, top contenders Raquel Pennington and Maira Bueno Silva will compete for the vacant strap to crown a new women’s bantamweight champion.
Former champion Pena was unfortunately left out of the event after sustaining a rib injury in early 2023, which led to her withdrawal from her scheduled bout at UFC 289. Pena expressed her disappointment with the decision to have an interim title fight in her absence, calling it “horrible” and temporary. She intends to fight the winner of the interim title fight upon her return from injury.
Pena voiced her frustration regarding the situation in an interview with MMA Junkie, stating, “It’s a shame to be forced into this horrible interim title fight. It’s going to be temporary. They’re just keeping me warm. They’re keeping my belt warm until I get back. Mom’s coming back, so I’m sorry I won’t be able to compete, but I’ll be back. My next fight is for the title, so whichever of these two birds wins, I will fight the winner.”
Pena, 34, last fought in July 2022 when she lost the title in a rematch with Nunes. Meanwhile, Pennington and Bueno Silva have been on impressive winning streaks in the division, with their last victories coming in January and February 2023, respectively.
Bueno Silva’s last fight resulted in a victory over former champion Holly Holm in July 2023. However, her victory was overturned to a no contest when she tested positive for ADHD medication. Despite this, both Bueno Silva and Pena have expressed interest in facing each other in the future.
Pena emphasized the importance of creating intriguing matchups to attract fans to her fights, expressing her desire for her opponents to be compelling dance partners in the octagon.
She also expressed her preference for Bueno Silva to win the interim title fight in order to make their potential future matchup more exciting for everyone.
